One-third of American Jews agree Israel committed 'genocide' in Gaza: Poll

Nearly one-third of American Jews agree with accusations that Israel committed “genocide” in the Gaza Strip, and 60 per cent support the establishment of an independent Palestinian State, a new poll has found, Anadolu Agency reports.

The survey, conducted by the Jerusalem Centre for Public Affairs, a private right-wing Israeli think tank, was carried out between 9 and 11 May and included 511 American Jews, according to a statement by the Centre.

“Approximately one-third of respondents agreed with the accusation that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza, while about half disagreed,” it said.

The poll found that 17.4 per cent of respondents strongly agreed and 12.5 per cent agreed with the accusations, whereas 24.8 per cent disagreed and 26.6 per cent strongly disagreed. Additionally, 18.5 per cent neither agreed nor disagreed.

READ: University of Chicago faces pro-Palestinian walkout amid diploma controversy

Israel has launched a brutal offensive on the Gaza Strip since last 7 October following a Hamas attack, killing more than 36,400 Palestinians, the vast majority being women and children, and injuring over 82,600 others.

Nearly eight months into the Israeli war, vast swathes of Gaza lay in ruins amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water and medicine.

Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which in its latest ruling has ordered Tel Aviv to immediately halt its operation in the southern city of Rafah, where over a million Palestinians had sought refuge from the war before it was invaded on 6 May.

Support for Biden’s arms pause

The results showed that over 51 per cent of American Jews support President Joe Biden’s decision to withhold arms shipments to Israel amid its ground offensive in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip.

According to the poll, 22.5 per cent of respondents strongly supported Biden’s decision, while 29.9 per cent backed it, 11.7 per cent opposed and 10.5 per cent strongly opposed it. Another 25.2 per cent neither supported nor opposed the decision.

Since Israel started its war on the Gaza Strip, the US has provided strong military, intelligence and diplomatic support to Tel Aviv.

Campus protests

The survey found that 34.4 per cent of American Jews viewed protests in universities as anti-war and pro-peace, while 28.3 per cent saw them as “purely” anti-Israel. Additionally, 25.3 per cent considered the protests both anti-war and anti-Israel and 11.9 per cent said they were neither.

Since April, universities in several countries, including the US, the UK, France and Spain, have seen protests against the Israeli war on Gaza amid calls for university administrations to end their cooperation with Israeli institutions.

When asked about their support for Israel after the protests, 33 per cent said their support increased, 43 per cent said it remained the same and 23.4 per cent said it decreased.

Two-state solution

As for a solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, 60 per cent of respondents considered a two-state solution as “the best way to peace, with varying conditions related to demilitarisation and recognition of Israel as a Jewish state”.

Negotiations for peace have been stalled since 2014, largely due to Israel’s ongoing settlement activities in the Occupied West Bank and its refusal to establish a Palestinian State based on the 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital.

The poll found that 11.5 per cent supported an unconditional independent Palestinian State, while 24 per cent backed it with the condition that it recognises Israel as a “Jewish state”.

Additionally, 16.8 per cent supported a confederation between Israel and a Palestinian State with security arrangements, 4.8 per cent supported the idea of Palestinian “tribal” emirates, and 3.1 per cent supported integrating Palestinians as citizens of Israel.

Only 5.8 per cent opposed the establishment of a Palestinian state altogether, and 8.8 per cent had no opinion.

READ: Pro-Israel former US envoy to UN in spotlight again for backing massacre in Gaza