Iraqi officials say Jan. 30 has been set as the new date for the war-torn country's first national elections since a U.S.-led military coalition toppled Saddam Hussein's regime.
An Iraqi election commission spokesman, Farid Ayar, who spoke to reporters Sunday did not give a reason for the election date change, which postpones by three days an earlier voting plan drawn up by the interim government in Baghdad.
Iraqis will choose a new national assembly, provincial councils across the country and a Kurdish regional parliament.
Continuing attacks on coalition forces by Iraqi insurgents have been a growing source of concern for Iraqi and U.S. officials as election day approaches.
U.S. military officials said today that nine men found dead Saturday in the northern city of Mosul were all Iraqi soldiers who had been shot in the back of the head.
Some information for this report provided by AFP.
