1st Round of Balloting Gets Mixed Reviews

Independent observers denounced the first round of Lebanon’s parliamentary elections as “unfair and unfree,” but officials said the voting was held “in a democratic and neutral atmosphere.” Counting began after polls closed in northern Lebanon, Mt. Lebanon--which is the Christian heartland--and the Chouf Mountains south of Beirut, where 1.3 million voters were electing 63 members to the 128-seat parliament. Results were expected today. The second round of voting will be held Sunday in Beirut, the Bekaa Valley in the east, and in the south.