WASHINGTON, Feb. 28 (UPI) -- More than 70 percent of U.S. troops now in Iraq want American troops withdrawn in 2006, according to a new poll of more than 900 troops by Zogby International.
Twenty-nine percent of the respondents said the United States should leave Iraq "immediately," and 22 percent said U.S. troops should pull out within six months. Another 21 percent said U.S. troops should pull out between six and 12 months from now, and 23 percent said they should stay as long as they are needed, which is the official policy.
Marines were inclined to believe in a long mission. While 89 percent of the reserve and National Guard soldiers and 70 percent of the active duty Army soldiers polled said the U.S. should leave Iraq within a year, only 58 percent of Marines polled agreed with that statement.
Just 15 percent of Marines in Iraq think the United States should withdraw in the next six months. In contrast, about three-quarters of the reserve and National Guard and half the regular Army soldiers polled believe they should be pulled out within six months.
At the same time, 53 percent said the United States should double both the number of troops and bombing missions in order to control the insurgency. And despite the raging insurgency, more than 80 percent said they did not hold a negative view of Iraqis because of those attacks, according to the poll.
In what the Pentagon and Congress would consider good news, 70 percent of troops said they have adequate troop protections, such as body armor, munitions, and armor plating for vehicles.
However, there is considerable confusion about the reason for the invasion. According to the poll, 85 percent of the survey respondents said the U.S. mission is mainly "to retaliate for Saddam's role in the 9-11 attacks," and 77 percent said they also believe the main or a major reason for the war was "to stop Saddam from protecting al-Qaida in Iraq."
President George W. Bush acknowledged in 2003 that Iraq was not directly involved in the terrorist attacks.
Zogby is not releasing the identities of the survey respondents.
