Poll: Afghan war not worth fighting

WASHINGTON, March 15 (UPI) -- Sixty-four percent of American adults say they don't think the war in Afghanistan is worth fighting, a Washington Post-ABC News poll released Tuesday indicates.

The number of respondents who say the war is not worth fighting rose from 44 percent in late 2009, the Post said.

The latest survey was conducted last week.

Political support for the nearly decade-old war falls sharply along partisan lines, with 19 percent of Democratic respondents and about 50 percent of Republicans saying the war still is worth fighting.

Nearly 75 percent of Americans say President Obama should withdraw a "substantial number" of combat troops from Afghanistan this summer. Obama has said the pace of the withdrawal would be dictated by ground conditions.

The Post-ABC News poll results came as Army Gen. David H. Petraeus, the top commander in Afghanistan, prepared to testify before Congress Tuesday about the course of the war.

Results are based on a nationwide telephone poll of 1,005 adults Thursday through Sunday. The margin of error is 3.5 percentage points.