69% of Israelis support assassinations even if ceasefire in Gaza delayed: Poll

As many as 69 per cent of Israelis support targeted assassinations even if they delay a ceasefire and prisoner exchange deal with Palestinian factions in the Gaza Strip, a new poll has found.

The survey was conducted by the Lazar Institute and published by the Israeli daily Maariv today.

Only 19 per cent of the respondents disagreed, while 12 per cent had no definite opinion.

The survey sampled 510 Israelis.

The poll comes as Israel assassinated Hezbollah Commander Fuad Shukr on Tuesday and is thought to be behind the targeting of Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh on Wednesday.

Though Israel has taken responsibility for the strike that killed Shukr, it has not commented on Haniyeh’s death.

Haniyeh was a chief negotiator for the Palestinian factions and was working to put together a ceasefire deal which would see Israel stopping its bombing of Gaza in return for the release of prisoners of war held in the Strip.

The Lazar Institute also found that 41 per cent of the respondents prefer opposition leader Benny Gantz as prime minister, compared to 39 per cent who support the current premier, Benjamin Netanyahu.

Based on the survey results, if elections were held today, neither Netanyahu’s bloc nor the opposition led by Yair Lapid would be able to form a government on their own.

The opposition would secure 58 seats, Netanyahu’s bloc 52, and Arab parties ten seats. To form a government, any party would need 61 lawmakers in the 120-seat Knesset.

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