Iraq held its first elections on Saturday 12 May since defeating the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (Isis).

Some 7,000 candidates competing for seats in the 329-member assembly. One quarter of the elected candidates must be women.

Although the results are due to be officially announced on Monday 14 May, the electoral commission announced that voter turnout was 44.5 percent - down considerably on the 60 per cent turn out achieved in the last elections in 2014.

There are 24 million Iraqis eligible to vote in the elections. There were more than 55,000 polling stations open across the country.