[ti:Counting the Votes in Iraq Only the First Step] [ar:Steve Ember] [al:IN THE NEWS] [by:www.51voa.com] [00:00.00]This is IN THE NEWS [00:06.96]in VOA Special English. [00:10.00]Iraqi officials [00:12.15]are still counting votes [00:14.44]from Sunday's elections. [00:16.85]More than six thousand candidates [00:19.86]competed for three hundred [00:22.01]twenty-five seats in parliament. [00:25.07]The State of Law coalition [00:27.91]of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki [00:30.81]took an early lead. [00:32.56]But full results [00:34.42]from all eighteen provinces [00:37.16]are not expected for days. [00:40.15]No single group is expected [00:42.98]to win a clear majority. [00:45.13]Building a coalition [00:47.28]to form a new government [00:49.28]could take months. [00:50.98]At least thirty-eight people [00:53.77]were killed Sunday [00:55.17]in a series of attacks [00:57.38]in Baghdad. [00:59.08]But the violence and threats [01:01.77]by insurgents failed [01:03.58]to stop millions [01:04.99]of Iraqis from voting. [01:07.13]Voter turnout was lower than [01:10.09]in the last national elections [01:13.02]in two thousand five [01:14.97]-- sixty-two percent compared [01:17.89]to seventy-six percent. [01:19.98]But it was higher than [01:22.39]some predictions. [01:23.58]There have been [01:25.52]some reports of cheating, [01:27.18]including accusations made [01:29.91]by the Iraqiya coalition [01:32.18]of former Prime Minister Iyad Allawi. [01:35.84]At the White House, [01:37.70]President Obama noted that [01:39.86]Sunday's voting was only [01:42.26]the beginning of a long process. [01:45.47]But he said the voting [01:47.07]made it clear, in his words, [01:49.19]"that the future of Iraq [01:51.59]belongs to the people of Iraq." [01:54.41]BARACK OBAMA: "Today, [01:55.04]in the face of violence [01:56.04]from those who would only destroy, [01:57.70]Iraqis took a step forward [01:59.76]in the hard work [02:00.67]of building up their country. [02:02.49]The United States will continue [02:04.26]to help them in that effort [02:05.90]as we responsibly end this war [02:07.46]and support the Iraqi people [02:09.00]as they take control of their future." [02:11.61]President Obama [02:12.50]praised the Iraqi security forces [02:15.49]which took the lead [02:16.98]in providing protection for voters. [02:20.07]The next government in Iraq [02:23.15]will have to take full responsibility [02:25.79]for the security of the country. [02:27.93]Fewer than one hundred thousand [02:31.17]American troops are in Iraq [02:33.83]for the first time [02:35.10]since the invasion seven [02:37.26]years ago next week. [02:39.40]Fifty thousand of those troops [02:42.04]are expected to leave [02:43.81]by the end of August. [02:46.14]And President Obama said again that [02:49.84]by the end of next year [02:51.48]all American troops [02:53.58] will be out of Iraq. [02:56.01]That still leaves Afghanistan. [02:58.77]On Wednesday, by a wide majority, [03:02.30]the United States House [03:04.09]of Representatives rejected a call [03:06.70]for a quick withdrawal [03:08.90]of American troops. [03:10.39]Democrat Dennis Kucinich [03:13.23]of Ohio offered the resolution. [03:15.81]He said it was time for Congress [03:18.82]to reconsider America's [03:21.27]involvement in Afghanistan. [03:23.42]DENNIS KUCINICH: "To reflect [03:24.78]on our responsibility [03:25.63]for troop casualties [03:26.92]that are now reaching a thousand. [03:29.02]To look at our responsibilities [03:30.92]for the cost of the war, [03:32.37]which approaches two hundred [03:34.33]fifty billion dollars. [03:35.23]Our responsibility [03:36.68]for the civilian casualties [03:38.87]and the human costs of the war." [03:40.63]Ileana Ros-Lehtinen of Florida, [03:42.52]the top Republican on the House [03:45.28]Committee on Foreign Affairs, [03:47.24]opposed the resolution. [03:49.28]She noted the recent success [03:51.62]of an American-led [03:53.39]offensive in Afghanistan. [03:55.21]ILEANA ROS-LEHTINEN: "Our brave men [03:56.90]and women are making steady progress [03:58.71]against the deadly foe [04:00.35]and are doing so [04:01.76]at great risk to their lives. [04:03.80]This offensive is already [04:05.70]producing dramatic success, [04:07.59]including the capture [04:09.30]of senior Taliban leaders, [04:11.10]the routing of their forces [04:12.74]and the stabilization of key areas." [04:15.63]President Obama decided late [04:17.99]last year to send [04:19.63]additional troops to Afghanistan. [04:21.74]But he wants to begin a withdrawal [04:24.84]from that country in July of next year. [04:28.37]Defense Secretary Robert Gates, [04:30.96]in Afghanistan Wednesday, [04:32.97]said it could begin sooner [04:35.63]if conditions permit. [04:37.19]And that's IN THE NEWS [04:40.18]in VOA Special English, [04:43.33]written by Brianna Blake. [04:45.27]I'm Steve Ember.