Nouakchott  - Mauritanians went to polls Saturday in presidential elections meant to restore political stability and the country's international legitimacy after a 2008 military coup.

Coup leader Mohammed Ould Abdel Aziz was tipped to win, though he was not expected to get an absolute majority, and could face a single challenger on a second election round in the north-west African Islamic country.

Shortly before voting began, a shoot-out between police and two men was reported in a Nouakchott neighbourhood where a US aid worker was shot dead by suspected al-Qaeda members recently.

One of the two men, who were suspected of involvement with the killing, reportedly sustained injuries. Both were then arrested. One of the two carried a belt with explosives.

The elections were the first since Abdel Aziz toppled president Sidi Ould Cheikh Abdallahi in a bloodless coup in August 2008.