More than 90 percent of young people in Iraq consider the United States to be an enemy of their country, according to a new poll. After years spent justifying the war as a “liberation” of the Iraqi people, the survey casts further doubt on the success of that endeavor.
Originally appeared at theintercept
The poll was conducted by Penn Schoen Berland, a public relations and market research firm co-founded by controversial strategist Mark Penn, and was sponsored by a Dubai-based affiliate of Burson Marsteller, once described as “the PR firm for evil.” Still, the undertaking, as outlined by organizers, sounds ambitious. It included 250 face-to-face interviews in three Iraqi cities, plus another 3,250 interviews in 15 other countries throughout the Arab world, all with men and women ages 18-24 “selected to provide an accurate reflection of each nation’s geographic and socio-economic make-up.” It claims an error rate of plus or minus 1.65 percent.
The survey found that overwhelming majorities of young people in Iraq, Yemen, and the Palestinian Territories consider the U.S. to be an enemy. In Gulf Arab states, on the other hand, perceptions of the United States were far more positive. Roughly 85 percent of those living in the Gulf say that they consider the U.S. to be an ally, with another 66 percent expressing the same view in North Africa.
The results of the poll offer an interesting window into long-term perceptions of the Iraq War by Iraqis themselves. Advocates of the 2003 invasion often justified it by claiming post-Saddam Iraq would be an ally of U.S. interests in the region. In a speech leading up to the war, then-Vice President Dick Cheney cited experts who claimed Iraqis would “erupt in joy” over the invasion, predicting it would result in “strong bonds” created between the two countries. But years later, after hundreds of billions of dollars spent and more than a hundred thousand Iraqis dead, the United States is overwhelmingly considered an enemy by young men and women who were children when the war began.
In Yemen, too, where the U.S. conducted an assassination campaign via drones and special forces, and where for the past year the U.S. has supported bloody Saudi bombings, over 80 percent of respondents described the U.S. as an enemy. These figures are particularly worth noting since the Obama administration has repeatedly cited Yemen as a counterterrorism success story. In recent months, that country has been pummeled by American weapons that have blown up weddings, marketplaces, and rural villages. Far from aiding stability, attacks on the country have in fact helped al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, according to recent reports.
The poll also asked participants to weigh in on a variety of other issues, including the rise of Islamic State, sectarianism, and women’s rights. Participants overwhelmingly rejected ISIS, predicting that it would fail in its goal of remaking the region and would be insupportable even if it didn’t resort to extreme violence. Most worried that sectarianism was increasing in the region and would prove an obstacle to stability. Across both genders, strong majorities said that rulers must do more to promote women’s rights in their countries.
But from an American perspective, the report’s most salient features pertain to anti-Americanism among young Arabs abroad.
“For years, many have argued that Muslims and Arabs, like other humans, don’t appreciate being bombed or occupied,” says Haroon Moghul, a fellow at the Institute for Social Policy and Understanding. “Finally, we have a study to confirm this suspicion.”
Hardly think it is a surprise given that the US attacked and trashed Iraq for no reason other than to prevent saddam trading oil in currencies other than the US dollar. The US has brought nothing but death, destruction and religious conflict.
I was working in Saudi Arabia during the first Gulf War and was fortunate to survive the many skuds that were fired at the city I was living in, thanks to the Patriot (built by Raytheon). Saddam attacked Kuwait accusing them of stealing oil using American technology called horizontal drilling. This is true; they were. In retrospect maybe the Americans should have let him have Kuwait but Saddam also seemed to want to continue and take over the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia which would have given him control of approximately 25% of the worlds oil reserves. This meant the whole world would have to deal with Saddam. He had to be stopped; he was.
Saddam eventually signed a truce once the US army crushed his war machine and was overlooking Baghdad. Rather than go home a lick his wounds Saddam started slaughtering the members of his population that he felt betrayed him, namely the Kurds in the North and the Shiites in the south. There were incidents of entire villages being wiped out using chemical weapons. The US imposed a no-fly zone to protect these people and for 11 years Saddam was STILL effectively at war with the US.
This war was costing the US billions upon billions a year and it appeared that it would go on indefinitely. When Bush II got in we had 9-11 and there were hints that Saddam had a hand in it plus Saddam tried to have his father killed. Someone had to make the decision to end this war for once and for good. Bush II made that decision and it was thought that the Iraqi people would rejoice and embrace the freedom they were granted. Bush and the rest of the world were unaware of the ways of Islam and were soon proven wrong.
Without the rule of an Iron Fist Muslims seem to go ballistic and start killing each other. Security troops were left in the country in hopes of stabilizing that situation and eventually things started to calm down and apart from the odd suicide bomber things were starting to get back to normal.
Then Obama got elected and removed all American troops. The whole country fell apart again and turned into a civil war between Sunnis, Shiites, and Kurds. The combined forces of Obama and Hillary has turned the entire Middle East into a Hell Hole.
Oh horsechit
Can you elaborate? You think I’m bullshitting? Is that what you’re trying to say? I welcome debate but ad hominem insults give little substance to work with. Perhaps you are incapable of creating sentence structure. Maybe if you grunt and groan they’ll let you out of your cage then we can communicate like humans.
You’re not worth my time to “debate”…. Go screw yourself.
Thank you for your kind words. I’ve tried to screw myself but it won’t reach. If you do eventually decide to debate I’ll be here with my penis pump trying to make it reach. Thanks for your kind advise.
Lol
Says the expert….with all his ridiculous details which are as stupid as all your comments… However, could you post a picture of yourself…. I’m curious how you type with your head up your arse….thanks !
You’re right! Could you imagine the amount of herculean job to teach something to this guy?
Your analysis is off by a mile, but maybe it’s not your fault. Maybe you are just abysmally misinformed. Let’s fix that.
Iran is a country with massive oil deposits. They did, and do, lack the equipment and infrastructure to fully exploit the oil they already have. It made no sense for Iraq to invade Iran in 1980 for it’s oil or to invade Saudi Arabia or Bahrain for the oil there. Iraq needs a port to export oil from, not more oil. Iraq’s tiny gulf coastline is mostly Euphrates/Tigris river delta – unsuitable for a major port due to the constant silt deposits. Kuwait offers an ideal site, and Kuwait was what he was promised by Poppy Bush as a reward for attacking Iran. Saddam was furious about the slant drilling from Kuwait, because they were draining pressure from operating Iraqi wells which Saddam had invested heavily to develop (and also because the Kuwaiti ambassador told Saddam he would steal Iraqi oil until “every woman in Baghdad is a 10-dollar whore”. The US ambassador stated that the US had no interest in getting involved in the dispute, Saddam believed her, construed this as an invitation to collect on Bush’s promise and invaded Kuwait. And thus the trap was set. This betrayal explains Saddam’s intense hatred for Bush, his attempt to assassinate him, and the appearance of Bush’s likeness on the floor of the entrance and on the back of the urinals of the Baghdad Hilton.
Desert Shield was a hoax. Saddam never showed any inclination to invade eastern Saudi Arabia or Bahrain (both are Shia dominated and Saddam had enough problems with his own Shia population). Desert shield allowed a US troop buildup to proceed while the war planners searched for a way to “cure” the US public of it’s “Vietnam Syndrome”. Viola! The “Incubator babies” hoax outraged Americans and saved the day.
Saddam did not go home and start slaughtering people out of spite; this is a lie. US agents convinced the Kurds and some Shia factions to take advantage of Saddam’s post-war weakness to overthrow Saddam’s regime. The rebels attacked and captured a majority of Iraq cities and provinces, but were eventually defeated by government forces in a successful counter-attack. This rebel defeat (depicted as oppression in the West) provided the excuse to establish a no-fly zone in Iraq. The no-fly zone was created after the rebellion was quashed. It was used to destroy Iraqi military infrastructure in preparation for a later invasion (gulf war II). We had no desire to protect the people, instead we implemented sanctions which murdered 1/2 million Iraqi children.
The impetus for the destruction of Iraq (and Iran) originated as a white paper written by Zionists in Israel circa 1990. This plan was formalized in a document titled “Rebuilding America’s Defenses…” and marketed to US officials/congressmen by a cabal of Israel-firsters known as “Project for a New American Century”. The aftermath of 911 provided the opportunity to resurrect the plan; under heavy lobbying by AIPAC, etc., it was adopted as policy by Bush II. The plan included Iraq, Iran, Syria, Lybia, Lebanon and Egypt. The invasion nothing to do with 911, WMD or any of the other lies. It was not about freedom. Or democracy. Or the cost of the no-fly-zone. It was purely a power play to enhance Israel’s position in the region – a plan which had been gestating for more than a decade in Washington.
The IRON FIST produced chaos and civil war in Iraq when we invaded. It was Shock-and-Awe, not Obama’s withdrawal. The invasion resulted in 2 million (Sunni) refugees fleeing to Syria, and many more displaced internally.
Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld and their neocon co-conspirators created the hell-hole in the mideast. Obama spread it to Syria. Hillary, if elected, will expand on this, and extend it to Europe, the Balkans, the Baltics, the Stans, etc. Maybe Russia too, but there it will end. Everything…will…end.
Definitely, you’re from Venus. Or even far further …
As far as I know there is no evidence of iraqi involvment in 911 and the four buildings which were attacked that day. If i’ve overlooked please let me know. All the uranium and wmd’s turned out lies told to sell the war. Saddam started selling oil in euros though which undermined the petro dollar. Ghaddafi was murdered for that too except with him it was the gold dinar. Evidence of this was uncovered in clintons emails. The bush family from prescott to bush 2 are known war criminals and organized crime figures.
Afghanistan is potentially a massive source of raw materials and deposits of rare earth metals. Hence the interest I think. The locals won’t play ball.
The most valuable and plentiful resource in Afghanistan is the Opium Poppy. Trafficking of this resource funds US covert wars worldwide. Thus GHW Bush’s nickname “Poppy Bush”. The US invasion followed immediately after the Taliban leader Mullah Muhammad Omar issued a fatwa which abruptly terminated opium cultivation. After the invasion, opium cultivation quickly returned to previous levels. Some US forces will remain there indefinitely to protect the opium trade.
Our original excuse for the invasion, to “get Osama Bin Laden” was quickly forgotten after the opium production was restored. We sent our forces to Iraq instead of Afghanistan, and allowed Bin Laden to escape.
What a load of cobblers. You should take up writing fiction.
The reason they attacked, was because Israel desires to expand. Jews run America today as they ran German politics in the 1920’s. When Israel orders the Americans to attack, America has to. Or the Zionist supremacist bring down the economy more.
There could be other factors. The pattern of intervention is more related to eliminating threats to the petrodollar. If the dollar ceases to be the global reserve currency then Isreal goes down with the US . The only slight anomaly is Afghanistan but that country could have up to $5trillion in minerals including large deposits of rare earthmetals.
Whether you think the invasion of Iraq was justified or not, while Bush was president he actually tried to create a stable state. It wasn’t until Obama came to power and removed the stabilizing force that the country fell apart. It doesn’t surprise that most Iraqi’s perceive the US as an enemy because with Obama in power THEY ARE.
Oh horsechit..
Where are you from? Venus?
@ Tomko Kubianca,
Here are some numbers contradicting your view of the Iraqi ToO.
Dead US GIs per year [IToO]
2003 – 486
2004 – 849
2005 – 846
2006 – 823
2007 – 904
2008 – 314
2009 -149
2010 – 60
The first inauguration of Barack Obama as the 44th President of the United States took place on Tuesday, January 20, 2009.
US and Allied forces were killed by Iraqis, not sand flies.
Back to the drawing board, I’d say…
The same U.S. crew that did all this have been contracted to work in the GOP contest.
I don’t comprehend. Can you explain?
Funny how the DEM’s have deployed far more solders into other countries then the GOP ever has. And Hillary wants to start world war 3 against Russia haha. If you don’t like the establishment, then join the Constitution Party, who believes the US military should stay within the USA. http://constitutionparty.com/
Wow….now that’s a surprise.