Dubai: Most Arabs said they had confidence in Bahrain's government to carry out promised reforms, the latest Doha Debates opinion poll indicated.

The opinion poll, which surveyed 1,008 people in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), North Africa and the Levant, found most support for the government in neighbouring Gulf countries.

Sixty per cent of respondents in the GCC said they opposed the ongoing public protests in Bahrain, and 41 per cent from the region believed that the Bahraini government's crackdown on the demonstrations was "the right thing to do."

However, around one third of those questioned in North Africa and the Levant said they believe the government crackdown was needed (33 per cent) but was done too violently (34 per cent).

The findings are in sharp contrast to the views of the audience who attended the December edition of "The Doha Debates," and who expressed doubts about the implementation of the promise to reform. The survey was carried out by the polling company YouGov on January 14 to 18.