Turkey as Leader | 2011 Arab Public Opinion Poll

Mavi Boncuk | 2011 Arab Public Opinion Poll: Results of Arab Opinion Survey Conducted October 2011


Download Presentation PDF

The Brookings Institution

NOVEMBER 21, 2011

On Monday, November 21, Shibley Telhami, Anwar Sadat Professor for Peace and Development at the University of Maryland and nonresident senior fellow at the Saban Center for Middle East Policy at Brookings, released the 2011 Arab Public Opinion Poll, which is produced each year in conjunction with Zogby International.

This year’s poll surveyed 3,000 people in Egypt, Morocco, Jordan, Lebanon, and the United Arab Emirates in October 2011

Among the key poll findings are:

·         Turkey is the biggest winner of the Arab Spring. In the five countries polled, Turkey is seen to have played the "most constructive" role in the Arab events.

·         Overall, Arabs polled strongly take the sides of the rebels against the government in Yemen (89%), Syria (86%) and Bahrain (64%). But there are regional differences. Those polle din the UAE mostly favor the government of Bahrain. The Lebanese are divided on Syria; the Jordanians are divided on Bahrain; and the Egyptians' support for the rebels in Bahrain is weaker than their support for the rebels in Yemen and Syria.

·         While a majority of Arabs polled continue to express unfavorable views of the United States (59%) the number of those who have favorable views has increased from 10% in 2010 to 26% in 2011. This improvement could be related to the perception of the American handling of the Arab Spring.

·         A majority of Arabs polled (52%) remain discouraged by the Obama administration's policy the the Middle East, though this is down from 65% in 2010 and up from only 15% in 2009.

Among other things, the poll also examined views toward a two-state solution and the Arab-Israeli issue, the Egyptian elections, the role of the media, and Iran's nuclear program.