An American public opinion poll held in six Arab states indicated that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is the most popular Arab leader. The poll, conducted by Maryland University in cooperation with Al-Zughbi International Foundation for Polls, showed that al-Assad has got most votes among Arab leaders. The poll included a sample taken in six Arab countries, namely Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Saudi Arabia and the UAE.
Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zaid Al Nhayan came second, and Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, Secretary General of Lebanon's Hizbullah came third. As for international figures, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez came first, and President Bashar al-Assad came second, SANA reported.
In response to a question about the most dangerous factor that poses a threat to the region, Israel was ranked first with 88%, and USA was the second with 77%. On the Arab-Israeli conflict, 44% of the participants said that Israel has become weaker after the recent war in Gaza Strip, while 11% considered that it is stronger.
On the other hand, 77% supported establishing a Palestinian national unity government. Regarding Iraq, 72% voted that Iraq became worse since the US occupation in 2003. The public opinion poll was announced recently during a lecture held at Brookings Institution in the presence of a big number of US government officials, diplomatic missions and research centers.
© 2009 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
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