However, following the terrorist attacks that occurred in the United States on 11 September 2001 and American military action in Afghanistan on 7 October, the Government decided to temporarily suspend overseas voting at the 2001 general election as having large numbers of Singaporeans congregating at known locations at known times could put them at risk of further terrorist attacks. Therefore, overseas voting first took place at the 2006 general election. The number of Singapore citizens who registered to vote overseas was 1,017, and of these, 553 resided in the 16 constituencies that were contested in the election. Eventually, 335 electors voted at eight polling stations around the world.