Israel’s methodical destruction of terrorist hiding places in Gaza has come at the cost of American support for continuing the war to root out Hamas, according to a new poll.
A new Gallup poll shows that support for Israel’s war has declined from a November survey, when support stood at 50 percent, to 36 percent this month.
The poll found that opposition to the grinding campaign that has left vast areas of Gaza in ruins has risen from 45 percent in November to 55 percent this month.
An Israeli woman taken hostage during the Oct. 7 Hamas-led attack told The New York Times she was sexually assaulted and tortured in Gaza, describing extensive details of her 55 days in captivity. https://t.co/THy3jkciS7
— The New York Times (@nytimes) March 26, 2024
Respondents not taking a side increased from 4 percent in November to 9 percent this month.
The poll shows that support among all partisan groups has dipped. Republicans remain the most faithful to Israel.
According to the poll, support for Israel among Republicans declined from 71 percent to 64 percent; among independents from 47 percent to 29 percent; and among Democrats from 36 percent to 18 percent.
Are Israel’s actions in Gaza justified?
Opposition to Israel has always been strongest among Democrats, with the poll showing that disapproval of Israel’s war on Hamas increased among Democrats from 63 percent to 75 percent; among independents from 48 percent to 60 percent; and among Republicans from 23 percent to 30 percent.
Hamas started this war, continues to hold hostages, and has promised to invade Israel again.
If you’re concerned about conditions in Gaza, blame Hamas.
Not Israel.
— Tom Cotton (@TomCottonAR) March 27, 2024
Gallup said the poll of 1,016 adults was done by phone between March 1 and March 20 and has a margin of error of plus or minus four percentage points.
The poll reflects comments from former President Donald Trump in a recent interview with Israel Hayom indicating that as the war in Gaza continues, the violence no longer seems proportional to much of the world.
“You have to finish up your war, to finish it up. You gotta get it done. And, I am sure you will do that. And we gotta get to peace. We can’t have this going on. And I will say, Israel has to be very careful because you’re losing a lot of the world. You’re losing a lot of support. You have to finish up,” Trump said, while acknowledging that the war was an essential response to the Hamas attacks of Oct. 7.
“You have to get the job done. And you have to get on to peace, to get on to a normal life for Israel and for everybody else,” Trump said.
The IDF’s operation against Hamas at Gaza City’s Shifa Hospital continues, with the military saying troops killed dozens of gunmen and captured weapons over the past day.
The raid at Shifa, which began early March 18, is being carried out by the Navy’s Shayetet 13 commando unit,… pic.twitter.com/jCxw21WEdA
— Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian (@manniefabian) March 27, 2024
However, Israel has said that it plans to go ahead with an assault on Rafah, the last major stronghold where Hamas terrorists have fled.
According to a report in the Times of Israel, citing a Lebanese newspaper, Israel is expected to launch its assault at the close of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, which ends with the Eid al-Fitr — roughly April 12. The report said the assault would begin in early May at the latest.
The ground attack is estimated to last between four and eight weeks while also trying to evacuate Rafah’s estimated 1.5 million civilians by designated routes.
