Iraqi poll to be released next week shows surge in popularity of Moqtada al-Sadr...

[conjur]

Link

By Roula Khalaf in Baghdad
Published: May 19 2004 21:49 | Last Updated: May 19 2004 21:49

An Iraqi poll to be released next week shows a surge in the popularity of Moqtada al-Sadr, the radical young Shia cleric fighting coalition forces, and suggests nearly nine out of 10 Iraqis see US troops as occupiers and not liberators or peacekeepers.

The poll was conducted by the one-year-old Iraq Center for Research and Strategic Studies, which is considered reliable enough for the US-led Coalition Provisional Authority to have submitted questions to be included in the study.

Although the results of any poll in Iraq's traumatised society should be taken with caution, the survey highlights the difficulties facing the US authorities in Baghdad as they confront Mr Sadr, who launched an insurgency against the US-led occupation last month.

Conducted before the Abu Ghraib prisoners' scandal, it also suggests a severe erosion of American credibility even before Iraqis were confronted with images of torture at the hands of US soldiers.

Saadoun Duleimi, head of the centre, said more than half of a representative sample - comprising 1,600 Shia, Sunni Arabs and Kurds polled in all Iraq's main regions - wanted coalition troops to leave Iraq. This compares with about 20 per cent in an October survey. Some 88 per cent of respondents said they now regarded coalition forces in Iraq as occupiers.

"Iraqis always contrast American actions with American promises and there's now a wide gap in credibility," said Mr Duleimi, who belongs to one of the country's big Sunni tribes. "In this climate, fighting has given Moqtada credibility because he's the only Iraqi man who stood up against the occupation forces."

The US authorities in Baghdad face an uphill battle to persuade Iraqis that the transfer of sovereignty on June 30 will mark the end of the US occupation. The removal of US troops was cited in the poll as a more urgent issue than the country's formal status.

Respondents saw Mr Sadr as Iraq's second most influential figure after Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, the country's most senior Shia cleric. Some 32 per cent of respondents said they strongly supported Mr Sadr and another 36 per cent somewhat supported him.

Ibrahim Jaafari, head of the Shia Islamist Daawa party and a member of the governing council, came next on the list of influential Iraqis. Among council members, Adnan Pachachi, the Sunni former foreign minister, came some distance behind Mr Jaafari. Mr Pachachi is regarded as the apparent favourite for the ceremonial post of president when a caretaker government takes over.

 

[SuperTool]

Winning hearts and minds. Neocons, what's plan B?

 

[Zephyr106]

Considering how Muslims thought of us before the Iraq invasion errrr liberation, we really should have gotten some Arab states on board the Coalition of the Willing so the occupation could be conducted by Arab Brothers. Of course, hindsight is 20/20, but some of the projections pre-war were clearly 20/400 or so.

Zephyr

 

[dahunan]

Iranians have been practically rioting in the streets in protest of our SEXUAL ASSAULTS on Iraqis and the occupation.

My feelings from the beginning were that George's GREAT CRUSADE would only CREATE MORE TERRORISTS!

 

[conjur]

Originally posted by: dahunan
Iranians have been practically rioting in the streets in protest of our SEXUAL ASSAULTS on Iraqis and the occupation.

My feelings from the beginning were that George's GREAT CRUSADE would only CREATE MORE TERRORISTS!

See my last post here:

http://forums.anandtech.com/messageview.cfm?catid=52&threadid=1304573&enterthread=y

 

[MadRat]

Bush should have got on TV and told the Iraqis to stand down. If they want to protest the rough treatment of the worst of the worst POW's, then perhaps they can release the 100 odd Americans rounded up (like the case of Nick Berg) by the Iraqi police. Its pretty apparent that the Iraqi police right now are infiltrated by the insurgency and cannot be trusted. Nick Berg's assassination was most likely done while in their care, so what danger do they pose to the others?

 

[Infohawk]

MadRat,

Operation Iraqi Sodomy will fail regardless of whether Bush tells the Iraqis to stand down. What exactly would Bush yapping on television do? Anyway, I thought we were suppose to be helping the Iraqis, now why are we telling them to stand down?

 

[Martin]

Respondents saw Mr Sadr as Iraq's second most influential figure after Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, the country's most senior Shia cleric. Some 32 per cent of respondents said they strongly supported Mr Sadr and another 36 per cent somewhat supported him.

Is this the silent majority people keep refering to?

 

[MadRat]

Shias are nothing to the Iman. Get the Iman to speak out and the bulk of resistance stops.

 

[RabidMongoose]

Originally posted by: Zephyr106
Considering how Muslims thought of us before the Iraq invasion errrr liberation, we really should have gotten some Arab states on board the Coalition of the Willing so the occupation could be conducted by Arab Brothers. Of course, hindsight is 20/20, but some of the projections pre-war were clearly 20/400 or so.

Zephyr

Do you think that this would have been possible? I wonder which countries would have agreed to it.

 

[dahunan]

Originally posted by: RabidMongoose

Originally posted by: Zephyr106
Considering how Muslims thought of us before the Iraq invasion errrr liberation, we really should have gotten some Arab states on board the Coalition of the Willing so the occupation could be conducted by Arab Brothers. Of course, hindsight is 20/20, but some of the projections pre-war were clearly 20/400 or so.

Zephyr

Do you think that this would have been possible? I wonder which countries would have agreed to it.

Desert Storm Coalition Gulf War I

The United States, especially Secretary of State James Baker, assembled a coalition of forces to join it in opposing Iraq, consisting of soldiers from 34 countries: Afghanistan, Argentina, Australia, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Canada, Czechoslovakia, Denmark, Egypt, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Honduras, Italy, Kuwait, Morocco, The Netherlands, Niger, Norway, Oman, Pakistan, Poland, Portugal, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, South Korea, Spain, Syria, Turkey, The United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom and the United States itself. US troops represented 74% of 660,000 troops in the theater of war. Many of the coalition forces were reluctant to join; some felt that the war was an internal Arab affair; others feared increasing American influence in Kuwait. In the end, many nations were persuaded by offers of economic aid or debt forgiveness. (Blum)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Desert_Storm

 

[ElFenix]

how exactly does one poll iraqis?

 

[rickn]

Originally posted by: ElFenix
how exactly does one poll iraqis?

offer them food, and enrollment into the iraqi suicide bomber program?

 

[Infohawk]

Originally posted by: ElFenix
how exactly does one poll iraqis?

The same way one polls Americans.

 

[zephyrprime]

how exactly does one poll iraqis?

They just go door to door. At least that's how they do it in the article I read.

 

[Format C:]

Originally posted by: MadRat
Bush should have got on TV and told the Iraqis to stand down. If they want to protest the rough treatment of the worst of the worst POW's, then perhaps they can release the 100 odd Americans rounded up (like the case of Nick Berg) by the Iraqi police. Its pretty apparent that the Iraqi police right now are infiltrated by the insurgency and cannot be trusted. Nick Berg's assassination was most likely done while in their care, so what danger do they pose to the others?

First I've heard of this. You got any links?

 

[ElFenix]

Originally posted by: Infohawk

Originally posted by: ElFenix
how exactly does one poll iraqis?

The same way one polls Americans.

you poll americans by telephone. this country has tons of telephones. iraq, not so many, i would think.

 

[MegaWorks]

you poll americans by telephone. this country has tons of telephones. iraq, not so many, i would think.

How do you know that Iraq doesn't have that many phone???? also they're other ways of conducting polls like in mosques for example.