Poll: 59% of Americans oppose strike on Syria

As US President Barack Obama is pushing to get Congress support for a military attack on Syria, a national survey shows the majority of Americans do not want their country to get involved.

Almost six in 10 of Americans – 59 percent – say Congress should not authorize even limited military action against the Syrian government, a CNN/ORC International Poll showed.

More than 7 in 10 of those surveyed believed that such strikes would not achieve any significant goals for the US or serve the country’s interests.

A 55-percent majority said they oppose air strikes on Syrian military targets, even if Congress authorizes the action.

The poll comes in a week that Obama is planning to appear in a series of interviews with six major television news outlets in an attempt to convince the American public and Congress that going to war with Syria is in favor of national interests.

Lawmakers have no different view on military action in Syria. In a USA Today poll, only 22 senators and 22 representatives out of the 533 US lawmakers voiced support for using military force against the Syrian government, which the US claims has used chemical weapons in an August 21 attack on militants stationed near Damascus. The Syrian government strongly rejected the claim.

As President Obama is trying to convince domestic oppositions on Syria, Secretary of State John Kerry continues his European tour struggling to gain international support for Washington’s controversial strike plan.

Kerry, who is now in London, has had four days of discussions with European allies to gain their support.