Commander praises Iranians' high public turnout in elections

Deputy Head of the General Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces for Logistic and Industrial Research General Mohammad Hejazi praised the Iranian nation's strong presence on political scenes and their support for the Islamic Republic ruling system during the recent parliamentary elections in the country. Hejazi said Thursday that participation of the Iranian nation in the March 2 parliamentary elections has foiled most of enemy plots. The official made the remarks on the sidelines of the closing session of a local ceremony in the Iranian capital. People's presence in the polling stations during the last Friday elections was indeed a "show of power before the eyes of the world's arrogant powers," Hejazi said. He added that the massive turnout has also guaranteed national security. Iranians from different walks of life came to the polling stations in large numbers on Friday to determine the fate of the country's legislative body for the next four years. Iranians staged a high turnout in the country's 9th parliamentary elections in a move deemed as a straight message to the US war rhetoric. Over 48 million Iranian voters were eligible to cast their ballots, and initial estimates showed that at least 65% of them have been present at the polling stations. The American and European reporters and journalists who had come to Iran to cover the elections were astonished by the high level of public participation at the polling stations. The foreign journalists were astounded after they witnessed large crowds of people queuing at the polling stations even before voting officially started.