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Most Americans Want Hamas Removed From Gaza, Support Strikes Against Iran’s Nuclear Facilities, Poll Finds
Pro-Israel rally in Times Square, New York City, US, Oct. 8, 2023. Photo: REUTERS/Jeenah Moon
Overwhelming majorities of American voters want Israel to permanently evict Hamas from Gaza, support Israel’s fight against the Palestinian terrorist group, and believe the Jewish state should carry out preemptive military strikes against Iran’s nuclear facilities, according to a new Harvard CAPS/Harris poll.
The poll — conducted from Feb. 19-20 among registered US voters — found that the vast majority of Americans support Israel and hope the Jewish state succeeds in its defensive military operations against Hamas. The data undermines the notion that Israel’s war against Hamas has weakened its popularity among the American people.
A striking 78 percent of Americans believe Hamas should be permanently removed from the Gaza Strip and “not allowed to govern” the Palestinian enclave, the survey found. In comparison, just 22 percent of respondents said they believe the terrorist group should be allowed to maintain its governing role in Gaza.
The findings were consistent across political parties, with 81 percent of Republicans and 74 percent of Democrats stating that Hamas should be replaced as the governing body of Gaza. In contrast, 26 percent of Democrats and 19 percent of Republicans indicated that Hamas’s governing capabilities should not be dismantled.
Meanwhile, 76 percent of respondents agreed that Iran’s nuclear facilities, which US and Israel officials believe are designed to build nuclear weapons, “should be destroyed.” Conversely, 24 percent believe the Iranian nuclear sites, which the regime claims are for peaceful purposes, should be kept intact.
Furthermore, 57 percent of Americans said they agree that the US “should support Israel in airstrikes to destroy Iran’s nuclear weapons facilities.” In contrast, 43 percent believe the US should not support such preemptive attacks.
The poll also found that 43 percent of Americans hold a “favorable” view of Israel, compared to 30 percent who hold an unfavorable view of the Jewish state. Hamas, the terrorist group that runs Gaza, is massively unpopular, garnering “favorable” responses from only 8 percent of respondents and “unfavorable” responses from 63 percent.
Only 13 percent of Americans hold a “favorable” opinion of the Palestinian Authority (PA) — the governing entity that runs parts of the West Bank. Around 46 percent of Americans have an “unfavorable” opinion of the PA, according to the poll.
More than three-quarter of Americans support Israel over Hamas in the Gaza war and believe Hamas should immediately release the remaining hostages it kidnapped during its invasion of the Jewish state on Oct. 7, 2023.
Indeed, 77 percent of Americans indicated they support Israel, compared to 23 percent who support Hamas. Though both main US parties strongly support Israel, Republicans are more solidly aligned behind the Jewish state. Among Democrats, 69 percent said they support Israel and 31 percent support Hamas. Republicans displayed firmer backing of Israel, with 85 percent supporting the Jewish state and 15 percent supporting Hamas.
Likewise, 79 percent of the American public believe Hamas “must release all remaining hostages without any conditions or face serious consequences.” About 74 percent of Democrats and 86 percent of Republicans believe that the terrorist group should hand over the remaining captives in Gaza. In contrast, 25 percent of Democrats and 14 percent of Republicans believe that Hamas should not face serious consequences for failing to release the hostages.
The post Most Americans Want Hamas Removed From Gaza, Support Strikes Against Iran’s Nuclear Facilities, Poll Finds first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Israel Readies for a Nationwide Strike on Sunday
Demonstrators hold signs and pictures of hostages, as relatives and supporters of Israeli hostages kidnapped during the Oct. 7, 2023 attack by Hamas protest demanding the release of all hostages in Tel Aviv, Israel, Feb. 13, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Itai Ron
i24 News – The families of Israeli hostages held in Gaza are calling on for a general strike to be held on Sunday in an effort to compel the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to agree to a deal with Hamas for the release of their loved ones and a ceasefire. According to Israeli officials, 50 hostages now remain in Gaza, of whom 20 are believed to be alive.
The October 7 Council and other groups representing bereaved families of hostages and soldiers who fell since the start of the war declared they were “shutting down the country to save the soldiers and the hostages.”
While many businesses said they would join the strike, Israel’s largest labor federation, the Histadrut, has declined to participate.
Some of the country’s top educational institutions, including the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and Tel Aviv University, declared their support for the strike.
“We, the members of the university’s leadership, deans, and department heads, hereby announce that on Sunday, each and every one of us will participate in a personal strike as a profound expression of solidarity with the hostage families,” the Hebrew University’s deal wrote to students.
The day will begin at 6:29 AM, to commemorate the start of the October 7 attack, with the first installation at Tel Aviv’s Hostages Square in Tel Aviv. Further demonstrations are planned at dozens of traffic intersections.
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Netanyahu ‘Has Become a Problem,’Says Danish PM as She Calls for Russia-Style Sanctions Against Israel
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks to the press on Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, July 8, 2025. REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein
i24 News – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has become a “problem,” his Danish counterpart Mette Frederiksen said Saturday, adding she would try to put pressure on Israel over the Gaza war.
“Netanyahu is now a problem in himself,” Frederiksen told Danish media, adding that the Israeli government is going “too far” and lashing out at the “absolutely appalling and catastrophic” humanitarian situation in Gaza and announced new homes in the West Bank.
“We are one of the countries that wants to increase pressure on Israel, but we have not yet obtained the support of EU members,” she said, specifying she referred to “political pressure, sanctions, whether against settlers, ministers, or even Israel as a whole.”
“We are not ruling anything out in advance. Just as with Russia, we are designing the sanctions to target where we believe they will have the greatest effect.”
The devastating war in Gaza began almost two years ago, with an incursion into Israel of thousands of Palestinian armed jihadists, who perpetrated the deadliest massacre of Jews since the Holocaust.
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As Alaska Summit Ends With No Apparent Progress, Zelensky to Meet Trump on Monday
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky speaks at the press conference after the opening session of Crimea Platform conference in Kyiv, Ukraine, 23 August 2023. The Crimea Platform – is an international consultation and coordination format initiated by Ukraine. OLEG PETRASYUK/Pool via REUTERS
i24 News – After US President Donald Trump hailed the “great progress” made during a meeting with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in Alaska on Friday, Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky announced that he was set to meet Trump on Monday at the White House.
“There were many, many points that we agreed on, most of them, I would say, a couple of big ones that we haven’t quite gotten there, but we’ve made some headway,” Trump told reporters during a joint press conference after the meeting.
Many observers noted, however, that the subsequent press conference was a relatively muted affair compared to the pomp and circumstance of the red carpet welcome, and the summit produced no tangible progress.
Trump and Putin spoke briefly, with neither taking questions, and offered general statements about an “understanding” and “progress.”
Putin, who spoke first, agreed with Trump’s long-repeated assertion that Russia never would have invaded Ukraine in 2022 had Trump been president instead of Democrat Joe Biden.
Trump said “many points were agreed to” and that “just a very few” issues were left to resolve, offering no specifics and making no reference to the ceasefire he’s been seeking.