Poll: 44% of American Jews oppose moving US embassy to Jerusalem

Forty-four per cent of American Jews don’t support the US President Donald Trump’s suggestion of moving the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, the American Jewish Committee (AJC)’s survey revealed yesterday.

The survey, which is conducted annually, was based on telephone interviews carried out in August, incorporating a national sample of 1,000 American Jews aged 18 and over. Nine per cent were Orthodox Jews, 16 per cent identified with the Conservative movement, 31 per cent were Reform Jews, two per cent Reconstructionists and 39 per cent who consider themselves “just Jewish”.

Thirty-six per cent of the survey’s respondents said that they would be in favour of the embassy’s relocation only in conjunction with a clear progress in the Israeli-Palestinian peace process. Only 16 per cent believe the embassy should be moved “immediately”, while four per cent were “not sure”.

The poll showed that 65 per cent of the interviewees see that there has been no progress in the peace process between both the Israeli and the Palestinian sides, compared to previous years.

Read: US Senate approves motion calling for relocation of embassy to Jerusalem

Of the respondents, 77 per cent had an “unfavourable” view of US President Donald Trump, while 21 per cent favour the way he is governing and performing in his job. Sixty-four per cent had voted for Hillary Clinton in last year’s election while only 18 per cent voted Trump.

Some seven million Jews live in the United Sates, according to official data released in 2014.