Iraqi Kurds Monday voted in an independence referendum that is widely expected to yield an overwhelming “yes” vote, even though the poll is facing objections from the government in Baghdad as well as neighboring countries and the United States.
Iraqi Kurds Vote in Independence Referendum
5
Precincts in Irbil, the capital of Iraqi Kurdistan, reported high voter turnout, with many families bringing their elderly or sick loved ones out to vote on Sept. 25, 2017. (H. Murdock/VOA)
6
Despite threats the referendum will spark both domestic and international tensions, families in Irbil, where the Independence vote is wildly popular, adorn their children with Kurdish flags, celebrating the vote, Iraqi Kurdistan, Sept. 25, 2017. (H. Murdock)
7
A Kurdish woman holds up her six-month-old boy, Botan, with ink on his hand, which symbolizes to their family that the future of Kurdistan is independence, in Irbil, Iraqi Kurdistan, Sept. 25, 2017. (H. Murdock/VOA)
