Kate Hodal - Arab world turns its back on religion – and its ire on the US

By Dilip -
The Arab world is turning its back on religion and on US relations, according to the largest public opinion survey ever carried out in the region. A survey of more than 25,000 people across 10 countries and the Palestinian territories found that trust in religious leaders has plummeted in recent years. The study, compiled by BBC News Arabic and Arab Barometer, a Princeton University-based research network, also identified a marked rise in the proportion of people describing themselves as “not religious” – from 11% in 2012-2014 to 18% this year.

Just 12% of the countries surveyed – which included Algeria, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Palestine, Sudan, Tunisia and Yemen – had a positive view of Donald Trump. More than twice as many (28%) felt positively towards Russia’s Vladimir Putin, while Turkey’s Recep Erdogan fared the best (51%). 

At least 60% of respondents in eight of the 11 places surveyed said violence against the US was a logical consequence of interference in the region. The sentiment was most pronounced in Lebanon, Palestine and Yemen, where 75% or more of those surveyed were of this view. Respondents also expressed concern over rising disquiet in their home countries: people in Algeria, Iraq, Jordan, Libya, Palestine and Sudan, said they felt they were sliding towards dictatorship. More than six in 10 Algerians, and four in 10 Sudanese, believe the last elections were not free and fair, the survey found.

Michael Robbins, the director of Arab Barometer, said the survey – which was conducted at random in private and face-to-face, and consisted largely of multiple-choice questions answered on a tablet – presented a number of significant findings. “Most importantly, in the vast majority of countries surveyed, governments are not meeting the expectations of their citizens,” said Robbins. “Often, trust in government tracks more closely with performance on providing security than on economic issues.”
read more: 
https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2019/jun/24/arab-world-turns-its-back-on-religion-and-its-ire-on-the-us



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