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Polling organizations have carried out many opinion surveys in Iraq since March 2003. The results of these polls, including those sponsored by the US[1] and UK[2] governments, show clearly that Iraqis have been very critical of the foreign forces in their country.

A poll, carried out in mid-2006 for the US Department of State and reported by the Washington Post, found that "a strong majority of Iraqis want the US-led Coalition forces to immediately withdraw from the country, saying that their swift departure would make Iraq more secure and decrease sectarian violence."[3] The results in Baghdad, according to the Post, showed that nearly three-quarters of residents polled said "they would feel safer if US and other foreign forces left Iraq," with 65 percent in favor of an immediate pullout.[4]

In September 2006, a World Public Opinion poll conducted by the Program on International Policy Attitudes (PIPA) at the University of Maryland confirmed the conclusions of the State Department poll.[5] According to the poll, 71 percent of Iraqis wanted their government to ask for the withdrawal of foreign forces within a year or less.[6] Compared to previous polls, Iraqis'urgency for withdrawal had grown and support for an open-ended presence had dropped considerably.[7]

Polls have consistently shown that a substential majority believe that the presence of US troops has increased violence in Iraq. PIPA's September 2006 poll found that Iraqis believe, by an overwhelming margin of 78 to 21 percent, that the US military presence is "provoking more conflict that it is preventing."[8] A survey conducted by the Iraq Centre for Research and Strategic Studies in November 2006 produced similar results, showing that nearly 66 percent of respondents thought the security situation would improve and violence would decrease if US forces were to leave.[9] Such findings were confirmed by British research firm Opinion Research Business, according to which, a majority of Iraqis feels "the security situation in Iraq will get better in the immediate weeks following a withdrawal of the MNF."[10]

A common theory heard in the streets of Baghdad is that the US military is deliberately creating a civil war in Iraq to have an excuse to stay.[11] In addition, a very large majority believes that the US will remain in the country, even if the Iraqi government asks it to withdraw, and that the US government plans to to maintain permanent bases in the country – a view shared by all ethnic groups in Iraq.[12]

In 2005, a secret military poll by the British Ministry of Defence revealed that a large proportion of Iraqis (45 percent) believed attacks against US and UK troops were justified.[13] Since January, the support for attacks against US forces has increased substantially and as of September 2006 reached 61 percent, with strong majorities in support of attacks amongst both Shia and Sunni repondents.[14] Approval for such attacks is highly correlated with the belief that the US plans to have permanent bases in Iraq.[15] PIPA points out that "if the US were to make a commitment to withdraw according to a timetable, support for attacks would diminish."[16]

The results of polls reflect Iraqis' broad discontent with conditions in the country. In 2006, PIPA estimated that 79 percent of Iraqis say that the US is having a negative influence on the overall situation in Iraq.[17] A 2007 poll conducted by D3 Systems for the BBC, ABC News, ARD German TV and USA Today shows that, in addition to violence and the lack of security, Iraqis deplore their poor living conditions, including the lack of availaibility of jobs, clean water, electricity and medical care, and have low expectations that things will improve in the future.[18] According to a British study in 2005, 71 percent of Iraqis say they rarely get safe clean water, 47 percent say they never have enough electricity, 70 percent say their sewage system rarely works and 40 percent of southern Iraqis say they are unemployed.[19]

[1]US Department of State, Iraq Civil War Fears Remain High in Sunni and Mixed Areas (June-July 2006) The report has not been made public. The Washington Post obtained the report and described some of its findings in: Amit R. Paley, "Most Iraqis Favor Immediate US Pullout, Polls Show" Washington Post (September 27, 2006)

[2]British Ministry of Defence, Secret Military Poll (October 2005) The report has not been made public. The Sunday Telegraph obtained the report and described some of its findings in: Sean Rayment, "Secret MoD Poll: Iraqis Supports Attacks on British Troops" Telegraph (October 23, 2005)

[3]Amit R. Paley, "Most Iraqis Favor Immediate US Pullout, Polls Show" Washington Post (September 27, 2006)

[4] Ibid.

[5]World Public Opinion Poll, conducted by the Program on International Policy Attitudes, University of Maryland, "The Iraqi Public on the US Presence and the Future of Iraq" (September 27, 2006)

[6]Ibid. p.4

[7]"Support for an open-ended commitment has dropped from 29 percent to 9 percent." See "Most Iraqis Want US Troops Out Within a Year" WorldPublicOpinion.org (September 27, 2006)

[8]World Public Opinion Poll, op.cit. p.5

[9]Iraq Centre for Rearch and Strategic Studies, Public Opinion Survey in Iraq: Security & Political Situations (November 2006) p.13

[10]Opinion Research Business, Public Attitudes In Iraq: Four Years On (March 2007)

[11]Paley, op.cit.

[12]World Public Opinion Poll, op.cit. p.9

[13]British Ministry of Defence, op.cit.

[14]Most Kurdish respondents (85%) disapprove. See World Public Opinion Poll, op.cit. p.8

[15]World Public Opinion Poll, op.cit. p.9

[16]World Public Opinion Poll, op.cit. p.9

[17]World Public Opinion Poll, op.cit. p.9

[18]D3 Systems, "Iraq Poll 2007" conducted for the BBC, ABC News, ARD German TV and USA Today (March 2007)

[19]British Ministry of Defence, op.cit.