Even the BBC
: Even the BBC is forced to admit that things are better in Iraq. The people of Iraq said so:
An opinion poll carried out in Iraq will make good reading for US President George W Bush and British Prime Minister Tony Blair.
The poll suggests that Iraqis are happier than they were before the invasion, optimistic about the future and opposed to violence.
The poll, of more than 2,500 adults, was commissioned by the BBC in association with other international broadcasters.
It suggests that the reporting of the daily attacks on the occupying forces in Iraq could be obscuring another picture.
This opinion poll gives a glimpse into the real life of Iraqis, who appear to be overwhelmingly pre-occupied with bread and butter issues – whether the lights go on or not, and the restoration of the economy.
Seventy percent said that things were going well or quite well in their lives, while only 29% felt things were bad.
And 56% said that things were better now than they were before the war.
Almost half (49%) believed the invasion of Iraq by the US-led coalition was right, although 41% felt that the invasion “humiliated Iraq”.
More than three quarters (79%) want Iraq to remain united, and only 20% want it to become an Islamic state.