42% of IraqiNews.com’s visitors consider U.S. withdrawal ‘positive’

BAGHDAD / IraqiNews.com: More than 42 percent of the Arabic and English websites of the IraqiNews.com news agency’s visitors considered that the withdrawal of U.S. forces from the Iraqi cities next June 30 will positively affect the security file throughout the country, while 39 percent of the visitors said it will affect it negatively. This came during a survey conducted by IraqiNews.com news agency on its Web site between May 9-25. A total of 1034 visitors took part in the survey. 13 percent said that the withdrawal will not affect positively or negatively on the security file. The majority of the voters on the Kurdish website (62 percent) said that the withdrawal of the U.S. forces from the Iraqi cities will affect positively, while 14% said it will have a negative affect. U.S. combat forces are scheduled to leave the Iraqi cities and districts by the end of June within preparations for withdrawal from Iraq by August 2010, to be completed by the end of 2011 commensurate with U.S. President Barack Obama’s plan. Currently there are 143,000 U.S. troops and 4,100 Britons in Iraq. SH (P)/SR 1