Sixty percent surveyed say opposition 'may be no better than the current government.' | REUTERS Poll: 70 percent say no arms to Syria

Americans overwhelmingly oppose arming anti-government groups in Syria even as a new U.S. policy looks to do just that, a poll posted on Monday says.

According to a survey from the Pew Research Center, 70 percent of Americans don’t want the United States and allies to send arms and military supplies to those factions challenging Syrian dictator Bashar Assad; 20 percent support that strategy. The Obama administration, however, has decided to send such aid to some elements of the Syrian opposition.


Sixty percent of those surveyed said the opposition forces “may be no better than the current government.” Still, more than half also said it “is important for the U.S. to support people who oppose authoritarian regimes,” 53-36 percent.

The poll of 1,512 adults was conducted June 12-16 and has a margin of error of plus-or-minus 2.9 percentage points.

Separately, a Gallup poll — also released on Monday — found that 54 percent of Americans don’t support the administration’s plan to aid the Syrian opposition, while 37 percent do.

That survey of 1,015 adults was conducted June 15-16 and has a margin of error of plus-or-minus four percentage points.

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