Nearly half of Iraqis support attacks on U.S. troops

[kpete]

Posted on Mon, Jan. 30, 2006
Nearly half of Iraqis support attacks on U.S. troops, poll finds
BY DREW BROWNKnight Ridder NewspapersWASHINGTON -

A new poll found that nearly half of Iraqis approve of attacks on U.S.-led forces, and most favor setting a timetable for American troops to leave.

The poll also found that 80 percent of Iraqis think the United States plans to maintain permanent bases in the country even if the newly elected Iraqi government asks American forces to leave. Researchers found a link between support for attacks and the belief among Iraqis that the United States intends to keep a permanent military presence in the country.

At the same time, the poll found that many Iraqis think that some outside military forces are required to keep Iraq stable until the new government can field adequate security forces on its own. Only 39 percent of Iraqis surveyed thought that Iraqi police and army forces were strong enough to deal with the security challenges on their own, while 59 percent thought Iraq still needed the help of military forces from other countries.
Seventy percent of Iraqis favor setting a timetable for U.S. forces to withdraw, with half of those favoring a withdrawal within six months and the other half favoring a withdrawal over two years.

"Iraqis are demanding a timetable for U.S. withdrawal, and most believe that the U.S. has no plans to leave even if the new government asks them to," said Steven Kull, the director of the Program on International Policy Attitudes at the University of Maryland, which conducted the poll. "This appears to be leading some to even support attacks on U.S.-led troops, even though many feel they also continue to need the presence of U.S. troops awhile longer."
http://www.fortwayne.com/mld/newssentinel/news/editorial/13750080.htm

[kurth]

1. WHAT??? No flowers and candy for our troops?

"The people of Iraq will welcome us as liberators."
- Dick Cheney on NBC's "Meet the Press," March 16, 2003

[greiner3]

2. I keep alluding to the published fact;

That there are a billion Muslims on the planet. Only 10% of them urge and support violence to America and its citizens. For the math challenged, that leaves 100 million Muslims who want America to disappear from the face of the Earth.

[cantstandbush]

3. And that is the half that will admit it. At leaset 90% of the rest feel

the same way but won't say so.