Most Muslims want US out of Middle East

[Neo]

April 26, 2007
Most Muslims want US out of Middle East

WASHINGTON, April 25: Large majorities in Muslim countries want US military forces out of the Middle East, says an opinion survey released this week.

Steven Kull, director of the University of Maryland’s Programme on International Policy Attitudes, which conducted the survey, said “a more disturbing finding is the substantial support for attacks on US troops operating in the region”.

Substantial numbers in Pakistan, Egypt, Morocco and Indonesia favoured attacks on US troops in Iraq, Afghanistan, and in the Persian Gulf.

An average of 74 per cent respondents in the four countries supported the goal of getting the United States to “remove its bases and military forces from all Islamic countries,” ranging from 64 per cent in Indonesia to 92 per cent in Egypt.

The survey also showed a disturbingly low awareness of international issues in Pakistan’s rural areas. While urban and rural people were polled in Morocco, Indonesia and Pakistan, the survey didn’t report findings from rural Pakistan because people there were unfamiliar with many of the issues in the survey, according to the pollsters.

Conducted between Dec 9 and Feb 15 using in-home interviews, the survey has a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points, except for Pakistan, where the margin is 4 points.

Many were also unconvinced that Al Qaeda committed the Sept 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

The study surveyed more than 4,000 people in the four Muslim countries. The findings, released in Washington, showed a vast majority of the Muslims surveyed feel undermining their religion is a key goal of US foreign policy.

At least 73 per cent people in Indonesia, Morocco and Pakistan and a shocking 92 per cent in Egypt, the strongest US ally in the Middle East, believed the United States seeks to “weaken and divide the Islamic world.” Further, an average of 64 per cent said the United States also aimed to “spread Christianity in the region.”

The survey indicates that the majority of respondents in these countries are opposed to violence against civilians and terrorist tactics of Al Qaeda. Three quarters also had favourable feelings about globalisation and overall 67 per cent agreed that “a democratic political system” is a good method of governing their countries.

An average of only 13 per cent of respondents in Pakistan, Egypt and Morocco said the primary US goal was to “protect itself from terrorist attacks”. The results in Indonesia were somewhat less negative where 23 per cent selected this option.

Only 28 per cent of Egyptians, 26 per cent of Indonesians, 35 per cent of Moroccans and 2 per cent of urban Pakistanis said they believed Al Qaeda was behind 9/11. Thirty-eight per cent of Egyptians blamed the United States or Israel for the attacks, as did 20 per cent of Indonesians, 31 per cent of Moroccans and 28 percent of urban Pakistanis.

An average of two out of three respondents named “expanding the geographic borders of Israel” as a third major US policy objective in the Middle East.

By contrast, less than one in four agreed that Washington wanted to create “an independent and economically viable Palestinian state”.

http://www.dawn.com/2007/04/26/top15.htm

 

[PakSniper]

well, this is a mutual feeling among majority of Muslims. Its' well know their policies (US) has caused more problems in the "ME" than it did any good what to so ever. Their was a report out about 2-3 months ago, saying that even educated people living in Europe thought the same thing. Its' just a matter of time that the people will get pushed off the edge, and take matters into it's own hands from these puppet leaders in the "ME". The current leaders their don't represent the will of the people, in Egypt thier are cry's of Mubarak to leave office, but whats' he's now doing is making a new law, that will give his party more power by resrticing other parties and he's now trying to get his son to succeed in his place. This whole democracy campaign is just a big "Drama", to further one's own goals.

 

[Adux]

I dont think it was Foriegn Policy of the US, It does what very country will do, make it more strong.. But rather ineptness of Muslim leaders. Maybe the muslims should do something about all the muslim leaders, who are allowing Americans to have bases in the first places. Other than Iran, nobody has the right to criticize Americans, cuz everybody else is involved with them and are their allies.

 

[PakSniper]

I dont think it was Foriegn Policy of the US, It does what very country will do, make it more strong.. But rather ineptness of Muslim leaders. Maybe the muslims should do something about all the muslim leaders, who are allowing Americans to have bases in the first places. Other than Iran, nobody has the right to criticize Americans, cuz everybody else is involved with them and are their allies.

US foreign policy is interwined in keeping those leaders where they are, any changes will have a positive impact on the people, but negative on US. The democratically elected Palestinean leadership is one example, people choose their leaders, and the biggest democracy expanders sancationed them cause they didn't like it. But its' also people's right according to "Hadith" that if a leader is un-just take him down by force, but sadly no one wants to do it, so they suffer repercussions in the end, when US has no need for them "Saddam" is just one in a long line.

About Iran, I agree with you on their.

 

[Adux]

Palestinians might have elected the HAMAS, but for me they are a terrorist organizations, I believe the US was right on that part.

But there are other instances where the US have kept Democracy out of the people's hands through their muslim leaders.

 

[Neo]

Sunday, May 20, 2007

Muslim world views US negatively, Congress told

By Khalid Hasan

Washington: In the world as a whole negative views of the United States have increased sharply in recent years, because the United States is perceived as unconstrained in its use of military force by the system of international rules and institutions that the US itself took the lead in establishing in the post-war period, an American professor told a congressional committee this week.

Prof. Steven Kull of the University of Maryland in testimony before a subcommittee of the House of Representative Committee on Foreign Affairs said the Muslim world is of particular interest as it is a major source of violence against the US. It is also an area of the world with particularly negative feelings toward the United States. Some have argued, he continued, that what is important is not that people in the region like the US, but that they fear it. When forced to make a choice between the US and Al Qaeda, it is surmised, this fear will increase the likelihood that people in the region will choose the US. Others have argued that negative feelings toward the US drive Muslims into the arms of Al Qaeda; that people in Muslim countries are so angry at the US that this leads them to actively support Al Qaeda in its fight against America. Neither of these views is quite correct as research shows that anti-American feelings make it easier for Al Qaeda to operate and grow in the Muslim world.

This conclusion, Prof. Kull told Congress, is based on a review of publicly available surveys from the Islamic world as well as a study of Egypt, Morocco, Pakistan, and Indonesia conducted this year at the University of Maryland. He said in Pakistan, 67 percent had an unfavourable view while 49 percent had a very unfavourable one. For decades, he explained, polls in the Muslim world and the statements of Muslim leaders have shown a variety of resentments about US policies. Muslims share the worldwide view that the US does not live up to its own ideals of international law and democracy. There have also been specific complaints that the US favours Israel over the Palestinians and the Arab world as a whole, that the US exploits the Middle East for its oil and that it hypocritically supports non-democratic governments that accommodate its interests. These attitudes persist. But now there is also a new feeling about the US that has emerged in the wake of 9/11. This is not so much an intensification of negative feelings towards the US as much as a new perception of American intentions. There now seems to be a perception that the US has entered into a war against Islam itself.

The most significant finding of his study was that across four Muslim countries, eight in 10 believe that the US seeks to “weaken and divide the Islamic world.” America is perceived as believing that it was attacked by Islam itself and as having declared war on Islam. Those surveyed repeatedly brought up the fact that President Bush used the term “crusade”, citing this as evidence of the America’s underlying intentions. There is also widespread support for attacks on US troops, which the Muslim want withdrawn from their lands. “It does appear that Muslims are embracing the type of religiously-based interpretation of the conflict with the US that is consonant with views that Al Qaeda has also long promoted. But in fact Al Qaeda is not popular,” Prof. Kull stated. Overwhelming majorities in all countries specifically reject attacks on civilians including attacks on US civilians in the United States and US civilians working in Islamic countries. Most agree that such attacks are contrary to Islam.

The US academic said that while Al Qaeda may not be popular, large majorities perceive the group as seeking to “stand up to America and affirm the dignity of the Islamic people” and equally large majorities agree with this goal. He testified, “Though Al Qaeda and America are both seen as largely illegitimate, America is seen as the greater threat. It is as if Muslims are living in a neighbourhood where there are two warlords operating. They do not like either one, but one is much more powerful. As long as the weaker one is standing up to the stronger one, it makes sense that they are inclined to play down their dislike for the weaker one.”

Prof Kull told the subcommittee that anti-American feeling by itself is not enough to lead to active support for Al Qaeda, but anti-American feeling can lead Muslims to suppress their moral doubts about Al Qaeda. This makes it politically more difficult for governments to take strong action against Al Qaeda. This gives Al Qaeda more room to manoeuvre. He pointed out that when the US decides whether to expand its military presence in a region, there are many factors that need to be taken into account. When the US acts on its own initiative, without multilateral approval, these public feelings are also apt to be highly focused at the US itself. When, the US greatly expanded its military footprint in the Muslim world after 9/11, some assumed that this expansion would not intimidate the general population, that people would perceive it as targeted against a highly circumscribed enemy that did not include them. But the population does not perceive the target of US military presence as separate from them. Rather the target is widely seen as the religion with which they deeply identify. The Muslim people were awed by American power, but this awe quickly turned to fear leading people to pull away from the US and to take a more accommodating view of those, like Al Qaeda, who defy America. He said the challenge now is to provide reassurance through credible evidence that the US has not targeted Islam itself. There may well be symbolic steps that could have some moderating effects. What is most important, however, is how the US comports its military force and how it communicates its long-term intentions.

http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2007\05\20\story_20-5-2007_pg4_1

 

[Cheetah786]

Adux;64903]Palestinians might have elected the HAMAS, but for me they are a terrorist organizations, I believe the US was right on that part.

so you mean they are terrorist because of what you think.and you are?
If to the west democracy is a big thing Hamas was elected by the people of the land.all of sudden thats not what the meant.what they mean is its only democracy if you elect people they like.

But there are other instances where the US have kept Democracy out of the people's hands through their muslim leaders

I doubt there is any Muslim country.that the American haven't installed a friendly puppet.

 

[Adux]

Hamas is a terrorist organization targetting civilians enough said, if the people elected them, quite disgraceful. It is similar to Pakistan electing the MMA or the current government of Gujarat

 

[Ababeel]

It is similar to Pakistan electing the MMA

I don't know how you dare to thought that MMA is a terrorist organisation. Even your GOD (USa) didn't dare to declare them so . They are not even massacring people like in Gujarat or Kashmir.
They form a just political party who want Islamic sharia by political means. One more thing for people like you anyone who is called terrorist by US is a terrorist. For us US is no.1 terrorist in this world and it is the US putting the orgn like HAMAS to wall and directly responsible for the carnage going on in Middle East.

 

[Adux]

My god USA???? lol...sheesh ...ok
Support Night Club Bombers!!!
how come Turkey is every happy the way it is!!! oH no evil Americans...sheesh

 

[Ababeel]

Still Turkish electing the Islamist rooted AKPand they will do it again. I challenge you.
You follower of SAM, DAM DAND, BHED

 

[Adux]

Huf!!! Puff!!!! lol

Poda nayintemonae