(Angus Reid Global Monitor) - Few people in Britain believe that their country’s troops serving in Afghanistan are defeating the Taliban, according to a poll by YouGov. Only 17 per cent of respondents think British soldiers and those serving under the mandate of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) are winning the war, 35 per cent believe British troops are not winning but victory is possible, and 33 per cent say victory is impossible.

In addition, 62 per cent of respondents believe British troops should be withdrawn from Afghanistan, either immediately or in the next year or so.

Afghanistan has been the main battleground in the war on terrorism. The conflict began in October 2001, after the Taliban regime refused to hand over Osama bin Laden, prime suspect in the 9/11 terrorist attacks in New York and Washington. Al-Qaeda operatives hijacked and crashed four airplanes on Sept. 11, 2001, killing nearly 3,000 people.

Britain committed troops to both the war on terrorism in Afghanistan and the U.S.-led coalition effort in Iraq. At least 737 soldiers—including 86 Britons—have died in the war on terrorism, either in support of the U.S.-led Operation Enduring Freedom or as part of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) led by the NATO.

On Dec. 12, British prime minister Gordon Brown declared that British forces are "winning the battle against insurgency" in Afghanistan, and that Britain and its coalition partners are "isolating and eliminating the leadership of the Taliban, not negotiating with them."

Polling Data

Turning to the issue of Afghanistan… As you may know British and American troops have retaken the town of Musa Qala from the Taliban. Do you think British and NATO troops are winning the war with the Taliban in Afghanistan or not?

Should British troops be brought home from Afghanistan?

Source: YouGov
Methodology: Online interviews with 1,481 British adults, conducted from Dec. 13 and Dec. 14, 2007. No margin of error was provided.

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