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More Than 8 in 10 Americans Support Israel Over Hamas, Harvard Poll Finds
US President Joe Biden holds a bilateral meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on the sidelines of the 78th UN General Assembly in New York City, Sept. 20, 2023. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque
An overwhelming majority of Americans support Israel over the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas, according to a new Harvard-Harris poll.
The poll, conducted from Oct. 11-13, revealed that the American public wants Israel to prevail in its ongoing military campaign in Hamas-ruled Gaza. The data also indicated that the American people believe the Jewish state should continue to prosecute the war until it achieves its objectives, including the permanent removal of Hamas from the Gaza strip and the release of the remaining hostages kidnapped from southern Israel last October.
According to the poll, Americans support Israel over Hamas by a margin of 81-19 percent. This represents a slight uptick from September, when 79 percent of Americans indicated support for Israel over the terrorist organization. Among respondents that follow the war “closely,” 81 percent similarly indicated support for Israel and 19 percent support Hamas.
The poll also showed a generational divide on Israel. Americans over 65 support Israel over Hamas by a staggering margin of 94-6 percent. Those aged 35-44 support the Jewish state over the terrorist group by a margin of 74-26 percent. Young Americans aged 18-24 are far more divided on the conflict, with 57 percent supporting Israel and 43 percent supporting the Hamas terrorist group.
The Jewish state also enjoys strong support across party lines, according to the poll. An overwhelming 85 percent of Republicans and 76 percent of Democrats said they support Israel. Meanwhile, 15 percent of Republicans and 24 percent of Democrats indicated they back Hamas.
A commanding majority of voters also said they believe that Israel should strike a ceasefire deal with Hamas after it achieves its key military goals. Among respondents, 68 percent believe a ceasefire “should happen only after the release of all hostages and Hamas being removed from power.” Only 32 percent of Americans support an “unconditional ceasefire that would leave everything in place as is.”
Most Americans also believe that the Hamas terrorist group should no longer be allowed to run Gaza. According to the poll, 81 percent of Americans believe Hamas should be “removed from running Gaza.” In contrast, 19 percent believe the terrorist group should be “allowed to continue to run” the Palestinian enclave.
The polling results show that Israel enjoys robust support among the American public despite a barrage of media criticism leveled at the Jewish state.
The results came amid growing pressure on the Biden administration by far-left progressives to adopt a tougher posture against the Jewish state. However, the data suggests that adopting such an approach toward the Israel-Hamas war, such as imposing a US arms embargo on Israel, might harm the Democrats in November’s US elections.
According to the poll, Americans believe Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump will be more “effective” on resolving the Israel-Hamas war than Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris by a margin of 47-37 percent.
The post More Than 8 in 10 Americans Support Israel Over Hamas, Harvard Poll Finds first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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After False Dawns, Gazans Hope Trump Will Force End to Two-Year-Old War
Palestinians walk past a residential building destroyed in previous Israeli strikes, after Hamas agreed to release hostages and accept some other terms in a US plan to end the war, in Nuseirat, central Gaza Strip October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Mahmoud Issa
Exhausted Palestinians in Gaza clung to hopes on Saturday that US President Donald Trump would keep up pressure on Israel to end a two-year-old war that has killed tens of thousands and displaced the entire population of more than two million.
Hamas’ declaration that it was ready to hand over hostages and accept some terms of Trump’s plan to end the conflict while calling for more talks on several key issues was greeted with relief in the enclave, where most homes are now in ruins.
“It’s happy news, it saves those who are still alive,” said 32-year-old Saoud Qarneyta, reacting to Hamas’ response and Trump’s intervention. “This is enough. Houses have been damaged, everything has been damaged, what is left? Nothing.”
GAZAN RESIDENT HOPES ‘WE WILL BE DONE WITH WARS’
Ismail Zayda, 40, a father of three, displaced from a suburb in northern Gaza City where Israel launched a full-scale ground operation last month, said: “We want President Trump to keep pushing for an end to the war, if this chance is lost, it means that Gaza City will be destroyed by Israel and we might not survive.
“Enough, two years of bombardment, death and starvation. Enough,” he told Reuters on a social media chat.
“God willing this will be the last war. We will hopefully be done with the wars,” said 59-year-old Ali Ahmad, speaking in one of the tented camps where most Palestinians now live.
“We urge all sides not to backtrack. Every day of delay costs lives in Gaza, it is not just time wasted, lives get wasted too,” said Tamer Al-Burai, a Gaza City businessman displaced with members of his family in central Gaza Strip.
After two previous ceasefires — one near the start of the war and another earlier this year — lasted only a few weeks, he said; “I am very optimistic this time, maybe Trump’s seeking to be remembered as a man of peace, will bring us real peace this time.”
RESIDENT WORRIES THAT NETANYAHU WILL ‘SABOTAGE’ DEAL
Some voiced hopes of returning to their homes, but the Israeli military issued a fresh warning to Gazans on Saturday to stay out of Gaza City, describing it as a “dangerous combat zone.”
Gazans have faced previous false dawns during the past two years, when Trump and others declared at several points during on-off negotiations between Hamas, Israel and Arab and US mediators that a deal was close, only for war to rage on.
“Will it happen? Can we trust Trump? Maybe we trust Trump, but will Netanyahu abide this time? He has always sabotaged everything and continued the war. I hope he ends it now,” said Aya, 31, who was displaced with her family to Deir Al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip.
She added: “Maybe there is a chance the war ends at October 7, two years after it began.”
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Mass Rally in Rome on Fourth Day of Italy’s Pro-Palestinian Protests
A Pro-Palestinian demonstrator waves a Palestinian flag during a national protest for Gaza in Rome, Italy, October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Claudia Greco
Large crowds assembled in central Rome on Saturday for the fourth straight day of protests in Italy since Israel intercepted an international flotilla trying to deliver aid to Gaza, and detained its activists.
People holding banners and Palestinian flags, chanting “Free Palestine” and other slogans, filed past the Colosseum, taking part in a march that organizers hoped would attract at least 1 million people.
“I’m here with a lot of other friends because I think it is important for us all to mobilize individually,” Francesco Galtieri, a 65-year-old musician from Rome, said. “If we don’t all mobilize, then nothing will change.”
Since Israel started blocking the flotilla late on Wednesday, protests have sprung up across Europe and in other parts of the world, but in Italy they have been a daily occurrence, in multiple cities.
On Friday, unions called a general strike in support of the flotilla, with demonstrations across the country that attracted more than 2 million, according to organizers. The interior ministry estimated attendance at around 400,000.
Italy’s right-wing government has been critical of the protests, with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni suggesting that people would skip work for Gaza just as an excuse for a longer weekend break.
On Saturday, Meloni blamed protesters for insulting graffiti that appeared on a statue of the late Pope John Paul II outside Rome’s main train station, where Pro-Palestinian groups have been holding a protest picket.
“They say they are taking to the streets for peace, but then they insult the memory of a man who was a true defender and builder of peace. A shameful act committed by people blinded by ideology,” she said in a statement.
Israel launched its Gaza offensive after Hamas terrorists staged a cross border attack on October 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people and taking 251 people hostage.
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Hamas Says It Agrees to Release All Israeli Hostages Under Trump Gaza Plan
Smoke rises during an Israeli military operation in Gaza City, as seen from the central Gaza Strip, October 2, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas
Hamas said on Friday it had agreed to release all Israeli hostages, alive or dead, under the terms of US President Donald Trump’s Gaza proposal, and signaled readiness to immediately enter mediated negotiations to discuss the details.