in 2018. The elections were not held in the predominantly Kurdish Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria, apart from ballot boxes in military zones controlled by the government in Hasakah and Qamishli, or in the opposition-held Northwest, which together make up a third of the country. Authorities in the Autonomous Administration closed the border to all vehicles except ambulances to prevent residents from travelling to government areas to vote. According to the Daily Sabah, tribes in Daraa, in Syria's south, also declared the election illegitimate, and hundreds of people there protested against the vote. Video footage showed polling officials casting votes on citizens' behalf before handing back ID cards. A student in Damascus told Al-Jazeera that “Some universities will fail or even expel you if you don’t vote" and state employees were instructed to vote by the security apparatus. Many voters pricked their fingers to sign their support for Assad in blood. Pro-government shabiha militias controlled the process in voting centers. Ibrahim al Jibawi, opposition representative in the Constitutional Committee in Geneva, declared that there were militia members that voted more than once. Protests were held against the elections in Daraa, where in response polling stations were reportedly shut down, and Suweida. International observers According to the state news agency, the People's Assembly voted to invite representatives of the parliaments of the following countries to monitor and supervise the electoral process: Algeria, Oman, Mauritania, Russia, Iran, Armenia, China, Venezuela, Cuba, Belarus, South Africa, Ecuador, Nicaragua and Bolivia. Observers from Belarus arrived on 23 May. Russian observers were shown on Syrian state TV station SANA, watching voters casting ballots without any privacy. Results Reactions Pre-election Syrian opposition The National Coalition for Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces said that the elections are "illegal and a farce". The Syrian National Council said “The only acceptable election in Syria is the one in which the war criminal Bashar al-Assad will not participate." Hadi al-Bahra, co-chair of the Syrian Constitutional Committee, called the elections "illegal": "Currently there is no safe and neutral environment that enables all Syrians [...] to exercise their right in casting their vote." The Kurdish National Council, which is part of the Turkey-based opposition, rejected the elections. Opposition groups and tribal leaders across government-occupied Daraa called for a boycott of the vote, describing it as a poorly made farce, with poor acting, and poor direction,” and demanded the implementation of United