An Iraqi election to choose the country's next leader and help shape the U.S. role here for the next four years opened Thursday to deadly violence and fraud claims. Early balloting began for hundreds of thousands of Iraqis, including police and military who will be on duty Sunday, the main voting day in Iraq's second general election since the ouster of Saddam Hussein. The result will help determine the dynamics of Iraq's democracy, its closeness to Iran and the U.S.'s ability to follow through on its plans to withdraw the bulk of its forces…The United Nations' envoy to Baghdad on Monday called the vote "the most decisive moment for Iraq's future" since U.S.-led forces toppled Mr. Hussein. At least 12 people were killed in three separate attacks Thursday, a police official in Baghdad told Iraqi television. In two of the blasts, suicide bombers tried to enter polling stations, and then detonated their explosive vests in the street among voters, the official said. A rocket struck near a closed polling station in northern Baghdad, killing five people, he said. There were also early signs of irregularities which, if widespread on Sunday, could sap the vote's legitimacy. – Wall Street Journal