Nearly three-quarters of American troops in Iraq think the United States should leave the country within a year, according to a poll touted as the first-ever survey of soldiers serving there.

The poll, conducted by Washington, D.C.-based Zogby International and Le Moyne College in Syracuse, N.Y., showed that 72 percent of the 944 soldiers surveyed face-to-face believe the United States should pull out.

That included 29 percent of respondents who said the United States should leave immediately; 22 percent who said it should leave within the next six months; and 21 percent who said troops should be out in six to 12 months.

Twenty-three percent said the United States should keep its soldiers in Iraq as long as they are needed.

Army Master Sgt. Michelle Michalak of Elyria, Ohio, who served in Iraq from January 2004 to January 2005, said she shares the majority sentiment.

"I think we should be out now," she said. "There are people there who appreciate the Americans but there are also those who don't."

She said the United States has accomplished much in Iraq but there also are problems here that need to be addressed.

"We have our own people that are homeless, hungry and living on the street, and why should we provide for people over there before we provide for our own people here?" she said.

Spc. Ralph Isabella of Slippery Rock, the subject of a Feb. 20 Post-Gazette story about divorce, domestic violence and child custody cases that proceeded while he was in Iraq, said he believes U.S. troops should remain until Iraq's own security forces can handle the job of protecting it.

"I've lost friends," he said. "I think pulling out anytime sooner would be a dishonor to the men lost."

The poll showed that 93 percent of respondents believe that removing weapons of mass destruction was not the reason why the United States was in Iraq; while 85 percent said the U.S. mission was "mainly to retaliate for Saddam's role in the 9/11 attacks" -- a role that has never been established.

Different branches of the military expressed different opinions, according to the poll. For instance, 89 percent of reserves and 82 percent of those in the National Guard think the United States should pull out within a year, compared with 58 percent of those in the Marines.

Marine Cpl. Justin Grieco of Irwin said that troops should stay until Iraq's military and civil law enforcement forces are stabilized.

Cpl. Grieco served in Iraq from August 2004 to March 2005.

"It's not our job to police their country," he said. "It's our job to train them well enough so they don't need any international military assistance."

A Pentagon spokesman told Knight-Ridder, "The poll's findings certainly aren't reflective of the attitudes we see displayed by the majority of troops, who are performing in a remarkable manner in a combat situation far from home."