More Americans oppose Afghan war

Almost half of the US population believes that the 2001 invasion of Afghanistan was a mistake, a new Gallup poll shows.

The poll found that 49 percent of Americans think the invasion should not have happened while 48 percent believe the opposite.

This marks the first time since the start of the so-called war on terrorism that Americans opposing the war outnumber those who think the invasion was justified.

When Gallup first asked Americans’ view on the issue back in 2001, less than 10 percent viewed the decision negatively which was the highest approval rating for what became the longest-running war in US history. Since then, there has been a steady decline in support for the attack.

The “mistake” percentage, fluctuating over the years, reached 25 percent in 2004 and then surpassed 30 percent for the first time in 2008 and 40 percent in 2010.

A comparison between Republicans and Democrats also showed the first group remains less likely to see the invasion of Afghanistan as a mistake.

The United States and its allies invaded Afghanistan as part of Washington’s so-called war on terror. The offensive removed the Taliban from power, but the country is still gripped by insecurity.

There are currently over 58,000 troops led by the United States on the ground in the war-torn country.

According to the latest figures released by the website icasualties.org, 2,313 US troops have been killed in Afghanistan since the start of US-led war.

At least 15 US-led soldiers have been killed in Afghanistan since the start of 2014. However, 2010 remains the deadliest year for foreign military casualties with a death toll of 711.