Four in 10 Americans believe Islam is more likely to encourage violence than other religions, up sharply from March 2002, six months after the September 11 attacks, according to a new Pew poll.
The figure is lower than July 2004, when a post-9/11 high of 46 percent of respondents said the Muslim faith is more likely than others to foment attacks, but it marks a significant rise from the 25 percent recorded in March 2002 and 35 percent from just seven months ago.
In the latest national poll conducted February 22 to March 1 by the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press, 42 percent of respondents said Islam does not encourage violence more than other ideologies, down from 51 percent in March 2002. [AFP] Read more
