Truck full of blank ballots confiscated near Iranian border
(AP)
Updated: 2005-12-14 16:11

The Iraqi Interior Ministry is looking into reports that a tanker truck filled with thousands of blank ballots had been confiscated in a town near the Iranian border, officials said Wednesday on the eve of the parliamentary elections.

A security official, speaking on condition of anonymity because he is not authorized to speak to the media, said the truck came from Iran and was seized Tuesday in the border town of Badra about 150 kilometers (93 miles) southeast of Baghdad.

Deputy Interior Minister Maj. Gen. Ali Ghalib said the ministry "has not been able to confirm the reports." He added that security forces in the eastern province of Wasit are looking into the case.

The security official earlier said that there were two other trucks that are believed to have crossed into Iraq.

"The search is still underway for the other two trucks. All the trucks carry Iraqi plates," he said.

Voters go to the polls Thursday to select a new 275-member parliament.