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U.S., Britain applaud "peaceful" presidential polls in Nigeria

Xinhua, March 30, 2015 Adjust font size:

The United States and Britain on Monday hailed the "largely peaceful" presidential election held in Nigeria over the weekend, in which they saw "no evidence of systemic manipulation."

"Our governments welcome the largely peaceful vote on March 28," U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond said in a joint statement. "So far, we have seen no evidence of systemic manipulation of the process."

Vote counting started on Sunday in Nigeria's fiercely contested presidential election that pits incumbent Goodluck Jonathan against former military ruler Muhammadu Buhari, with the Electoral Commission hopeful for the final result by Monday.

The U.S. sent its top envoy for African affairs Linda Thomas-Greenfield to observe the Nigerian poll, which was extended for one day into Sunday in some parts of the country due to technical glitches.

A heavy police presence had failed to stem attacks by the extremist Boko Haram group, in which at least 25 people were killed. Endi