Eight in 10 Americans believe that recent sectarian violence in Iraq has made civil war likely, according to an ABC News/ Washington Postpoll.
The parliamentary elections in December had produced a sharp gain in public optimism over progress in Iraq, but the slide toward civil war has erased those gains just as quickly, ABC said.
More than seven in 10 Republicans and eight in 10 Democrats and political independents believe civil war is imminent, showing the public's assessment cuts across party lines, the Washington Postsaid.
About one-third of Americans polled thought such a conflict was "very likely" to occur, the newspaper said.
The surge in violence has killed more than 500 people since the destruction of a major Shia shrine in Samarra on February 22nd.
Fifty-five per cent of poll respondents said the United States was not making significant progress in restoring civil order in Iraq - up 19 points on a poll in December.
Nearly half said they thought there has been progress in establishing a democratic government in Iraq. But that was down from 65 per cent on the poll conducted shortly after December's parliamentary elections in Iraq.
Nearly three months after Iraqis elected a parliament, Iraq's political leaders are still fighting over the post of prime minister, delaying the formation of a grand coalition government
According to the poll, a record 65 per cent of Americans believe the Bush administration lacks a clear plan for what to do in Iraq. But despite the bleak views of the situation in Iraq, fewer than 20 per cent of respondents support an immediate withdrawal of all US troops.
Some 59 per cent of respondents disapproved of President Bush's handling of the situation in Iraq. His overall job approval rating was steady at 41 per cent.