Over 70% of Iraqis: US forces out

An opinion poll suggests that more than two-thirds of Iraqis believe US-led coalition forces should leave the war-torn country.

According to a poll conducted for British television ahead of the fifth anniversary of the Iraq invasion, more than two-thirds of Iraqis believe US-led coalition forces should leave.

The ORB/Channel 4 News survey suggested that 70 percent thought multinational forces should withdraw, AFP reported.

Overall, the wide-ranging poll painted a mixed picture of Iraqi attitudes, contrasting their bleak daily existence with a surprisingly positive attitude about the future.

It threw up stark statistics on the human cost of war, which began on March 20, 2003, its effect on infrastructure and daily life, plus the bloody sectarian violence that erupted in the aftermath of the invasion.

A quarter of those surveyed said they had lost a family member to murder. In Baghdad, that figure rose to nearly half (45 percent).

Some 81 percent had suffered power cuts and 43 percent had experienced drinking water shortages. In the last month, more than a quarter (28 percent) had been short of food.

ORB and its local partner IIACSS interviewed 4,000 Iraqis in person between February 24 and March 5. Press TV