Overwhelming Majority of Israeli Arabs Oppose Hamas Violence: Poll
An aerial view shows the bodies of victims of an attack following a mass infiltration by Hamas gunmen from the Gaza Strip lying on the ground in Kibbutz Kfar Aza, in southern Israel, Oct. 10, 2023. Photo: Reuters/Ilan Rosenberg
A recent survey of Israeli Arabs shows that 80 percent oppose the attacks carried out by Hamas in the areas surrounding the Gaza Strip, according to Israeli media.
The survey, conducted by Nimrod Nir, Mohamed Khalail and researchers from The Hebrew University in Jerusalem was conducted on October 10, three days after the massacre began.
Sixty-six percent of Israeli Arabs support the state’s right to defend itself against a Hamas attack, and 85 percent of respondents oppose the kidnapping of civilians. Further, among Israeli Muslim Arabs, 50 percent believe that Hamas’ attack against Israel “is contrary to the values of Islam.”
Five percent said they supported the attacks and 15 percent declined to answer.
That point was echoed by Mansour Abbas, head of Israel’s Islamist Ra’am Party, who has made repeated public statements over the past two weeks against Hamas and the harming of civilians.
The results stand in contrast to polling in previous conflicts between Israel and Hamas, when opinions amongst Israeli Arabs was more split.
Separately, a poll conducted by the firm HarvardHarris shows that 51 percent of Americans aged 18-24 and 48 percent aged 25-34 believe that Hamas’ attack on Israeli civilians “can be justified by the grievances of the Palestinians.”
This survey was conducted online within the United States from October 18-19, 2023 among 2,116 registered voters
Amid hostilities in May 2021 between the Israeli military and Palestinian terrorist groups in May 2021, widespread violence broke out between Arab and Jewish Israelis.
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