Election a "success"

"Our assessment is that, in general, these elections went much better than we anticipated," Ettore Sequi, the European Union's special representative to Afghanistan, told AFP.

The roughly 6,200 election centers which were able to accept voters was "an achievement considering the concerns before the election," he added.

Despite dozens of Taliban missiles and bombs and the deaths of more than 20 people, many international leaders agreed with Sequi's statement.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel called the election "an important chapter in the democratic development of the country."

NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said the election was "a testimony to the determination of the Afghan people to build democracy." He congratulated the voters for their courage in the face of Taliban threats.

"Seen from a security point of view, the election has been a success," he said. "The most important thing is that the election will be considered credible in the eyes of the Afghan people."

While no official voter turnout figures have been released, there is concern that if a low percentage of the 15 million registered voters showed up to cast their ballots, it would diminish the legitimacy of the election.

Taliban attacks close some polls, delay voting

As voting continued across the country during the day, Taliban militants stormed a town in northern Afghanistan, launching a multi-pronged assault that left at least eight of them dead and kept polling stations from opening, officials said.

"Terrorists attacked from several directions. Fighting has been going on since morning," provincial police chief Mohammad Kabir Andarabi told reporters in Baghlan. "Now, as we speak, the enemy has been pushed back. We have killed 22 terrorists. Most of their bodies are left on the ground," he added.

Abdul Majeed Azimi, head of the provincial intelligence agency, confirmed the incident but said the corpses of only eight rebels were found. The local district police chief and one of his guards were also killed.

A 12-year-old boy was wounded in the clashes, he added.

Azimi said polling stations did not open in the small town on the highway between Pul-i-Khumri, the capital of Baghlan province, and Kunduz province. "No elections there. I don't think there will be because fighting is ongoing," he said.

Residents confirmed to local media that no polling stations were open.

EU calls on Afghans to resist Taliban pressure

The EU had called on the Afghan people to defy the Taliban and cast their ballots, as a team of about 100 EU observers kept a watchful eye on the voting process.

"We encourage the Afghan people to go out and vote on this very important day, which sets the path towards democracy for the Afghan nation and its people," European Commission spokesman John Clancy said in Brussels.

Clancy said no EU monitors had been injured in any attacks.

The EU has the largest international observer mission in Afghanistan.

European election mission to monitor results

Headed by Philippe Morillon, a former French general and now a member of the European Parliament, the mission has been monitoring the election campaign and is now focusing on polling, counting and tallying the results.

It plans to condemn any serious breach of electoral rules and procedures, with a preliminary statement from Morillon expected on Saturday.

So far, its biggest worry has been with proxy voting. Concerns have been fuelled by a suspiciously high rate of registration for female voters in traditionally conservative parts of the country.

Despite being escorted by Afghan and NATO forces, the monitors have not been deployed throughout the country owing to the precarious security situation.

The EU is a major donor to Afghanistan. The bloc's Brussels-based executive arm, the European Commission, has provided the country with 1.4 billion euros ($2 billion) in aid since 2002. In all, 18 of the EU's 27 member states have embassies in Kabul.

hf/nda/AFP/dpa/Reuters

Editor: Nathan Witkop