BAGHDAD, Jan. 15 (Xinhuanet) -- Vehicle traffic will be banned in polling areas in an effort to avoid bloodshed on election day, the interim Iraqi government said on Saturday.

    "Vehicle travel will be limited between Iraqi provinces and inside each region, even among Baghdad's different neighborhoods,"said Wael Abdul Latif, the state minister for provincial affairs.

    In a joint press conference with the head of the electoral commission Abdul Hussein Hendawi, Abdul Latif gave no detailed plan but said necessary facilities would be provided to "ensure the success of the election."

    Sources close to the security forces told Xinhua that an area of two square kilometers surrounding each of the thousands of polling centers will be sealed off to head off possible car bombings.

    A number of militant groups, including some responsible for the deadliest car bomb attacks in Iraq, have threatened to wage more assaults on voting centers.

    Iraqi government repeatedly pledged that the elections will beheld on time on Jan. 30, while many Sunni factions called for boycott or declared a withdrawal at best, arguing that the deteriorating security situation is unable to guarantee a safe, fully-participated polling. Enditem