Poll: Iraqis back attacks on U.S. troops

Poll: Iraqis back attacks on U.S. troops

By BARRY SCHWEID, AP Diplomatic WriterWed Sep 27, 6:28 PM ET

About six in 10 Iraqis say they approve of attacks on U.S.-led forces, and slightly more than that want their government to ask U.S. troops to leave within a year, a poll finds.

The Iraqis also have negative views of Osama bin Laden, according to the early September poll of 1,150.

The poll, done for University of Maryland's Program on International Policy Attitudes, found:

_Almost four in five Iraqis say the U.S. military force in Iraq provokes more violence than it prevents.

_About 61 percent approved of the attacks — up from 47 percent in January. A solid majority of Shiite and Sunni Arabs approved of the attacks, according to the poll. The increase came mostly among Shiite Iraqis.

_An overwhelmingly negative opinion of terror chief bin Laden and more than half, 57 percent, disapproving of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

_Three-fourths say they think the U.S. plans to keep military bases in Iraq permanently.

_A majority of Iraqis, 72 percent, say they think Iraq will be one state five years from now. Shiite Iraqis were most likely to feel that way, though a majority of Sunnis and Kurds also believed that would be the case.

The PIPA poll, which included an oversample of 150 Sunni Iraqis, has a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.

The State Department, meanwhile, has conducted its own poll, something it does periodically, spokesman Sean McCormack said. The State Department poll found two-thirds of Iraqis in Baghdad favor an immediate withdrawal of U.S. forces, according to The Washington Post. McCormack declined to discuss details of the department's poll.

"What I hear from government representatives and other anecdotal evidence that you hear from Iraqis that is collected by embassy personnel and military personnel is that Iraqis do appreciate our presence there," he said. "They do understand the reasons for it, they do understand that we don't want to or we don't intend to be there indefinitely."

An Iraqi public opinion research firm with a proven record of conducting scientifically valid surveys conducted the department's poll, press officer Janelle Hironimus said later.

"We will not identify the firm in order to protect it and its employees from danger," she said.

Iraqi officials have said Iraq's security was improving and expanding throughout the country, and most U.S. troops might be able to leave eventually.

Last week, Iraqi President Jalal Talibani told the United Nations that coalition forces should remain in Iraq until Iraqi security forces are "capable of putting an end to terrorism and maintaining stability and security."

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060927...lyLkM4UewgF;_ylu=X3oDMTA3MXN1bHE0BHNlYwN0bWE-

 

Is the Pope Catholic?

 

HEre are a few positives that have come out of the report that Z10's half truth left wing propaganda omitted and strangely enough the roll call of those that conducted the study and released the half truth are all clinton ass kissers.

More left wing lies.

"But there are some silver linings getting little attention in the poll conducted earlier this month for University of Maryland's Program on International Policy Attitudes. And many of those behind the organization conducting it have ties to past Democratic administrations and think-tanks known for opposing the war.

Overall 94 percent have an unfavorable view of al-Qaida, with 82 percent expressing a very unfavorable view. Of all organizations and individuals assessed in the poll, Osama bin Laden's terrorist organization received the most negative ratings.

Antipathy toward bin Laden's terrorists is near unanimous among Shiites (95 percent) and Kurds (93 percent). Even among his fellow Sunnis, 77 percent express unfavorable views of al-Qaida.

When the personality of bin Laden is measured, he doesn't do much better.

In addition, the new Iraqi army gets higher marks. One of the driving forces for wanting an early departure of U.S. troops may have to do with increasing confidence in Iraqi army forces – trained by Americans.

Pro-American leaders in Iraq fare better than those opposing American policy. Ayatollah Sistani, who has rejected Iranian meddling in Iraq, is supported by 95 percent of Shiites. Prime Minister Nouri Al Maliki runs a strong second with 86 percent. But Muqtada but al Sadr, the Iranian-backed militia leader gets only 51 percent support.

Asked whether Iran is having a mostly positive or negative influence on the situation in Iraq, just 45 percent of Shiites say it is having a positive influence. Kurds and Sunnis are overwhelming negative about Iran.

Syria is also seen as a problem in Iraq. Most Shiites (68 percent) think Syria is having a negative influence. Most Kurds agree (63 percent). Sunnis are only slightly more positive, with 41 percent having a favorable view.

The board of advisers for the Program on International Policy Attitudes, which conducted the poll, includes Anthony Lake, national security adviser to President Clinton; I.M. Destler, formerly a senior associate at the liberal Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and at the liberal Brookings Institution; Alan Kay, a board member of the progressive Center for Defense Information and a commissioner of the Global Commission to Fund the United Nations; Gloria Duffy, U.S. deputy assistant secretary of defense and special coordinator for cooperative threat reduction in the Clinton administration; Bill Frenzel of the liberal Brookings Institution and a special adviser to Clinton on NAFTA; and Catherine Kelleher, a deputy assistant secretary of defense under Clinton who served on President Carter's national security council staff and a former senior fellow the Brookings Institution.

Among other studies the program has conducted was an October 2003 report showing how viewers of U.S. media – especially Fox News -- hold "misperceptions about American foreign policy." Some of those "misperceptions," however, turned out to be, at the very least, debatable – such as whether there were weapons of mass destruction in Iraq and whether Saddam Hussein had links to al-Qaida.
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So how is the civil war going, neocon? Is the "mission accomplished" yet?
Ironically sometimes specimens like you ought to look into the mirror for a little self-examination. Your head is so much up in your own or your government's ass.
Look fool, we are the <b><u>occupiers</u></b> of their homes (Iraq and Afghanistan) we do not do crap for them but installed a puppet regime, that which is in Afghanistan is a joke already.. have tens of thousands of mercenaries roaming the streets of their land (how is that for illegal combatants ???(these are civilian hired killers) aka death squads. You should look at some facts to wake you up!