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Americans, Especially Democrats, Becoming Less Sympathetic to Israel, Poll Finds
People walk at a square where Israeli flags are displayed, amid the ongoing conflict between Hamas and Israel, in Tel Aviv, Israel, July 16, 2024. Photo: Reuters/Ricardo Moraes
American sympathies regarding the Middle East are sharply shifting against Israel, according to a new Gallup poll.
The poll, which collected responses from Feb. 3-16 and released its findings on Thursday, found that 46 percent of Americans sympathize with Israelis and 33 percent sympathize with Palestinians, reflecting the lowest level of support for the Jewish state in the 25 years of the survey’s existence. The Jewish state’s previous low-point in the poll stood at 51 percent in 2001.
Moreover, American sympathy toward Palestinians has steadily climbed over the past decade. In 2015, only 15 percent of Americans expressed sympathy with Palestinians over Israelis. By 2023, that number increased to 27 percent.
Democrats and Republicans also hold widely disparate views on Israel and the Palestinians, according to the poll. Approximately 83 percent of Republicans and 33 percent of Democrats currently have a “favorable” view of Israel, representing a staggering 50-point partisan gap. Though Republican support for Israel has largely remained stable since the start of the ongoing war in Gaza, Democratic support for the Jewish state has collapsed in recent years, dropping 20 points between 2022 and 2025.
This is the first year that the majority of either major political party expressed an “unfavorable” view of Israel, with 60 percent of Democrats indicating a negative opinion of the Jewish state. In addition, 40 percent of self-described independent voters indicated an “unfavorable” view of Israel.
The recent survey by Gallup is the latest indicator that support for Israel is increasingly fragmenting along partisan lines. An Economist/YouGov survey from last month found that 35 percent of Democrats indicate their sympathies “are more with” Palestinians, and only 9 percent say they are more sympathetic toward Israelis. Meanwhile, 32 percent of Democrats responded that their sympathies are “about equal” between both Palestinians and Israelis, and another 24 percent were not sure. That same poll revealed that 60 percent of Republicans expressed sympathy with Israelis, while 6 percent expressed more sympathy toward Palestinians.
Shifting views of Israel among the Democratic base have likely influenced liberal lawmakers to stake out more adversarial positions against the Jewish state. Although Democratic politicians have repeatedly reiterated that Israel has a right to “defend itself,” many have raised concerns over the Jewish state’s conduct in the war in Gaza. Many Democrats reportedly exerted private pressure on former US President Joe Biden to adopt a more aggressive stance against Israel and display more public sympathy for the Palestinians.
In November 2024, 17 Democrats voted in favor of implementing a partial arms embargo against Israel. Every Republican senator voted against the attempted embargo. High-profile Democratic lawmakers, such as Jon Ossoff (D-GA), accused Israel of behaving with “reckless disregard” for the lives of Palestinians. Ossoff also lectured Israel to “have mercy on the innocent.” However, some Democrats, such as Reps. Ritchie Torres (D-NY) and Jared Moskowitz (D-FL) and Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA), have expressed unwavering support for Israel and have lambasted their liberal peers for abandoning support for the Jewish state.
The post Americans, Especially Democrats, Becoming Less Sympathetic to Israel, Poll Finds first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Report: IDF Probes Whether Houthis Used Iranian Cluster Bomb-Bearing Missile
Houthi leader Abdul-Malik al-Houthi addresses followers via a video link at the al-Shaab Mosque, formerly al-Saleh Mosque, in Sanaa, Yemen, Feb. 6, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah
i24 News – The Israeli military said Saturday it launched a probe into the failure of its defenses to fully intercept a missile launched by Yemen’s Houthi jihadists, parts of which struck not far from the Ben Gurion airport on Friday night.
According to the Ynet website, one of the hypotheses being examined is that the projectile contained cluster munitions, similar to those used by Iran to fire at Israeli cities during the 12-day war in June. Cluster munitions pose a challenge to interceptors as they disperse smaller explosives over a wide area.
In June, Iran fired several missiles carrying scattered small bombs with the aim of increasing civilian casualties.
The IDF said on Saturday that its initial review suggests the ballistic missile from Yemen likely fragmented in mid-air. Five interceptors from various systems engaged with the missile, including THAAD, Arrow, David Sling & Iron Dome.
Authorities said that shrapnel impacted a house in the central Israeli moshav of Ginaton, yet no one was hurt, with the fragment landing in the house’s backyard.
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Iran Forces Kill Six Militants, IRNA Reports, Israel Link Seen
The Iranian flag is seen flying over a street in Tehran, Iran, Feb. 3, 2023. Photo: Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via REUTERS
Iranian security forces shot dead six militants in a clash in southeastern Iran on Saturday, a day after armed rebels killed five police officers in the restive region, the official news agency IRNA reported.
IRNA said evidence showed the group was linked to Israel and may have been trained by Israel‘s Mossad spy agency. There was no immediate Israeli reaction to the allegation.
Another two members of the militant group were arrested, the report said. All but one of the militants were foreign, it added, without giving their nationality.
Iranian police said this month they had arrested as many as 21,000 suspects during the 12-day war with Israel in June.
Iran’s southeast has been the scene of sporadic clashes between security forces and armed groups, including Sunni militants and separatists who say they are fighting for greater rights and autonomy.
Tehran says some of them have ties to foreign powers and are involved in cross-border smuggling and insurgency.
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Benny Gantz Urges Time-Limited National Unity Government to Further Chances of Hostage Deal
Israeli Defence Minister Benny Gantz attends his party’s meeting at the Knesset, Israeli parliament in Jerusalem, June 27, 2022. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun
i24 News – Blue and White Party leader Benny Gantz on Saturday called on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and opposition politicians to form a temporary national unity government to further the chances of bringing home the hostages held in Gaza.
Addressing Netanyahu, Yair Lapid and Avigdor Liberman, Gantz said that the proposed government’s two supreme priorities would be the release of Israeli hostages held by the jihadists of Hamas and instituting universal conscription in Israel by ending the exemption from military service enjoyed by the ultra-Orthodox.
Upon attainment of the goals, the government would dissolve and call an election.
“The government’s term will begin with a hostage deal that brings everyone home,” Gantz said in a video address. “Within weeks, we will formulate an enlistment outline that would see our ultra-Orthodox brethren drafted to the military and ease the burden on those already serving. Finally, we will announce an agreed-upon election date in the spring of 2026 and pass a law to dissolve the Knesset [Israeli parliament] accordingly. This is what’s right for Israel.”