By Mohammad Ghazal
AMMAN - Jordanian Muslims' support for Osama Ben Laden has dropped dramatically this year, with only 19 per cent expressing confidence in Al Qaeda leader, compared to 61 per cent three years ago, according to a study.
A spring 2008 survey by the Pew Research Centre’s Pew Global Attitudes Project indicated that since 2002, the percentage of those who believe that suicide bombing and other forms of violence against civilians are justified to defend Islam from its enemies has declined in most predominantly Muslim countries surveyed and opinions about Ben Laden have followed a similar trend.
According to the report, 20 per cent of Lebanese Muslims and 15 per cent of Turkish Muslims had positive views of Ben Laden in 2003, but seven years after the September 11 attacks, his ratings have plummeted to the low single digits in both countries (Turkey 3 per cent and Lebanon 2 per cent).
Substantial numbers of Muslims, however, continue to express confidence in Ben Laden, according to the poll, notably in Nigeria (58 per cent), Indonesia (37 per cent) and Pakistan (34 per cent).
The survey, which was conducted between March 17 and April 21 this year, indicated that Jordanian Muslims’ support for suicide attacks dropped by 18 points since 2002, but a quarter still support suicide attacks.
The poll covered a representative sample of 1,000 Jordanians, with a 3 per cent margin of error.
The survey indicated that Jordanian women are more likely than men to support suicide bombing, with 26 per cent believing it is often or sometimes justified, compared to 22 per cent of males.
Commenting on the report, head of Al Quds Centre for Political Studies, Oraib Rintwai, said the triple bombings in the capital in 2005 were a decisive turning point in diminishing support for suicide attacks and Ben Laden.
"Before the Amman attacks, Ben Laden was regarded as a hero and Al Qaeda was viewed as a resistance movement in Jordan, but the situation completely reversed after the bombings," Rintwai told The Jordan Times.
He said the big drop in support for Ben Laden and suicide attacks is "good news" for stability in the region, as people are now more aware, but noted that this position could change.
"If clashes start anew involving Israel and the US and there are more massacres in Palestine and Iraq, this will revive extremism and gradually restore the status of Al Qaeda. Therefore, it is crucial to solve crises and conflicts in the region, especially the Palestinian-Israeli one," Rintwai said.
With regard to the drop in support for suicide attacks, he said the situation is unclear because it depends on who the target is.
“Is it the Israelis, Israeli settlers or occupiers who are not civilians? Palestinian civilians are killed by the dozens… If these attacks are against Israel and the US, then the answer will be different, because there is hostility against them and it has many reasons," Rintwai explained.
According to political analyst Mohammad Abu Rumman, there are many reasons behind the decline in Al Qaeda’s popularity.
"The movement's standing greatly decreased after the Amman bombings. There is more awareness as well in the Arab world of Al Qaeda's actions and many reject its operations that target civilians. Other Sunni resistance factions have initiated media and political campaigns against Al Qaeda, and that affects them," he noted.
Abu Rumman stressed that there is a difference between suicide attacks, when there is occupation, and attacks against civilians.
"Jordanians are aware of the difference between legitimate resistance, even if it includes suicide attacks, and operations targeting civilians," he pointed out.
The Pew Global Attitudes Project is a series of worldwide public opinion surveys ranging from people's assessments of their own lives to their views about the current state of the world.
More than 24,000 people in 24 countries were surveyed for the project this year, including just under 8,000 in the eight countries polled for their views on suicide bombings and Ben Laden.
