Poll: Most Egyptians favor annulling peace with Israel

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Most Egyptians are in favor of annulling a peace treaty with Israel, according to a Pew Research Center poll released on Monday.

The US-based think tank polled 1,000 adults throughout Egypt between March 24 and April 7, finding that only 36 percent would maintain peace. The percentage of Egyptians who support annulling the treaty (54%) does not vary amongst those who sympathize with Islamic fundamentalists and those who do not. However, those with lower incomes are less likely to support the peace with Israel than those with higher incomes.

The Pew survey also showed that only 22% of Egyptians said the US has had a positive impact on the political change in their country, while 52% disapprove of the the American response to general Middle East upheaval. In addition, 80% have an unfavorable opinion of the US, and 60% say they do not have confidence in US President Barack Obama.

The most popular agent of change in Egypt today is Ruling Council chief Field Marshal Mohamed Hussein Tantawi, who received a 90% positive rating, closely followed by Arab League chief and Egyptian presidential hopeful Amr Moussa with 89%. The Muslim Brotherhood has a 75% positive rating, while former Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak was ranked positively by only 13% of those polled.

Most Egyptians (57%) are optimistic about the country's future, and 65% are satisfied with the way things are going, as opposed to 28% who were satisfied in 2010. Only 41% think that it is very likely that the next election will be free and fair. More Egyptians say that better economic conditions (82%) and maintaining law and order (63%) are more important than fair elections (55%).