An Afghan boy, above, carries election material on his back to polling stations which are not accessible by road in Shutul, Panjshir province, on Friday, a day before the country embarks on its first democratic transition of power. Afghans will choose a successor to President Hamid Karzai, who has ruled the country since 2001 and is constitutionally barred from running again.
A successful election would prove to be a huge propaganda loss for the Taliban, which was toppled after it sheltered Osama bin Laden, the mastermind of the Sept. 11 attacks on the United States.
