Poll: U.S. split on troops in Afghanistan

PRINCETON, N.J., Oct. 8 (UPI) -- U.S. citizens are pretty evenly divided over whether the United States should increase troop presence in Afghanistan, a Gallup Poll released Thursday indicated.

Forty-eight percent say they favored a decision by U.S. President Barack Obama to send more troops, while 45 percent said they would oppose it, results showed.

Two weeks ago, the public leaned against a troop increase, the Princeton, N.J., polling agency said.

The poll, conducted for Gallup and USA Today, was taken just before the eighth anniversary of the start of U.S. military operations in Afghanistan. Obama is considering whether more U.S. troops should be deployed as recommended by Army Gen. Stanley McChrystal, the top commander for U.S. and NATO troops in Afghanistan.

Five percent of respondents said they oppose a troop increase, but said the United States should maintain its current troop level of about 65,000, the poll indicated. Thirty-eight percent of Americans said they thought the United States should begin withdrawing troops from Afghanistan.

Results are based on national telephone interviews with 1,007 adults conducted Tuesday. The margin of error is 4 percentage points.