Iraqi Kurds Vote in Independence Referendum

At a pro-Independence rally, this woman says the referendum is the best thing that has happened in her life, in Irbil, Iraqi Kurdistan, Sept. 25, 2017. (H. Murdock/VOA)

Voters search for their names at polling stations in Irbil, Iraqi Kurdistan, Sept. 25, 2017. (H. Murdock/VOA)

Iraqi Kurdish families photograph each other voting in a referendum for independence that Baghdad has vowed to prevent being implemented, in Irbil, Iraqi Kurdistan, Sept. 25, 2017. (H. Murdock/VOA)

Kurdish President Masoud Barzani says he believes some of the international alarm surrounding the referendum will subside after the measure is passed, in Irbil, Iraqi Kurdistan, Sept. 24, 2017. (H. Shekha/VOA)

Precincts in Irbil, the capital of Iraqi Kurdistan, reported high voter turnout, with many families bringing their elderly or sick loved ones out to vote on Sept. 25, 2017. (H. Murdock/VOA)

Despite threats the referendum will spark both domestic and international tensions, families in Irbil, where the Independence vote is wildly popular, adorn their children with Kurdish flags, celebrating the vote, Iraqi Kurdistan, Sept. 25, 2017. (H. Murdock)

A Kurdish woman holds up her six-month-old boy, Botan, with ink on his hand, which symbolizes to their family that the future of Kurdistan is independence, in Irbil, Iraqi Kurdistan, Sept. 25, 2017. (H. Murdock/VOA)