Washington: Public support for Israel in the United States has declined sharply, with nearly one-third of American adults now believing Israel has committed genocide against Palestinians during the war in Gaza, according to a new survey by The Associated Press-NORC Centre for Public Affairs Research.
The poll highlights a significant shift in public opinion on a foreign policy issue that has traditionally enjoyed broad bipartisan support, with views becoming increasingly divided along partisan and generational lines nearly three years after the latest Israel-Hamas war began.
The survey found that about 30 per cent of U.S. adults believe Israel has committed genocide in Gaza, while around 20 per cent disagree with that characterisation. Nearly half of the respondents said they did not have enough information to form an opinion.
Among Democrats, about half described Israel's military campaign as genocide. The findings also showed that around 30 per cent of Jewish American adults shared that view, while nearly half rejected the allegation.
Israel has consistently denied accusations of genocide, a position supported by the U.S. government, despite similar allegations being raised by several international human rights organisations.
The poll comes against the backdrop of the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel, in which about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, were killed and 251 hostages were taken into Gaza. Since then, more than 73,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between civilians and combatants. The ministry says more than 1,000 people have been killed since the latest ceasefire began.
The survey suggests that American sympathy has continued shifting away from Israel and towards Palestinians, accelerating a trend that had already emerged in recent years.
Around four in 10 respondents said they lacked sufficient information to judge whether Israel's initial military response to the October 7 attack or its continuing operations in Gaza were justified. Among those expressing an opinion, most considered Israel's initial retaliation justified, but a majority believed its ongoing military campaign was not.
Support among Jewish Americans also reflected a distinction between the initial response and the prolonged conflict. Approximately three-quarters said Israel's immediate retaliation after the Hamas attack was justified, while only about four in 10 supported its continuing military operations.
The poll found that Israel remains a highly important issue for only about one-third of American adults personally, although it continues to play a major role in U.S. politics ahead of the congressional midterm elections, which will determine control of Congress during President Donald Trump's final two years in office.
Within the Democratic Party, attitudes have shifted markedly. About 58 per cent of Democrats now believe the United States is too supportive of Israel, compared with 45 per cent in an AP-NORC survey conducted in January 2024 during former President Joe Biden's administration. Among Jewish Democrats, 51 per cent also believe U.S. support for Israel is excessive.
At the same time, roughly 62 per cent of Democrats believe the United States is not doing enough to support Palestinians, up from 49 per cent in 2024. Younger Democrats remain more likely than older Democrats to hold this view, although support among older Democrats has also increased significantly in recent years.
Republican opinion has remained largely supportive of Israel, although signs of generational differences have emerged. Overall, only 13 per cent of Republicans described Israel's actions as genocide. However, around one in five Republicans under the age of 45 agreed with that assessment, compared with about one in 10 Republicans aged 45 and above.
About 60 per cent of Republicans said current U.S. support for Israel was appropriate, while only around one in five believed Washington was too supportive of its ally. The proportion of Republicans who felt the United States was not supportive enough of Israel declined from 39 per cent in 2024 to 15 per cent in the latest survey.
Photo: AP
The survey also measured public opinion of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Only 20 per cent of U.S. adults expressed a favourable opinion of Netanyahu, while 38 per cent viewed him unfavourably and 41 per cent said they did not know enough to form an opinion.
Netanyahu received particularly low ratings among Jewish Americans, with about six in 10 expressing an unfavourable opinion and roughly one-third viewing him positively.
Younger Americans across party lines were more likely than older respondents to say they had no opinion of Netanyahu. Among Republicans, older voters generally viewed him favourably, while younger Republicans tended to hold more negative views.
Photo: AP
The poll also assessed opinions of New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who has gained national attention for his criticism of Israel. About 27 per cent of U.S. adults viewed Mamdani favourably, 28 per cent held an unfavourable opinion and 44 per cent said they were unfamiliar enough to express a view.
Among Jewish Americans, Mamdani received a more favourable overall rating than Netanyahu. About 44 per cent viewed the mayor positively, while 39 per cent held an unfavourable opinion. Among Democrats overall, around half viewed Mamdani favourably, while only about one in 10 viewed him negatively.
Despite the prominence of the Israel-Gaza conflict in political debate, the survey found that many Americans remain more concerned about domestic issues, particularly the economy, as they look ahead to the upcoming midterm elections.
The AP-NORC poll surveyed 3,040 U.S. adults between June 11 and June 17 using NORC's nationally representative AmeriSpeak Panel. The survey included interviews with 1,022 Jewish adults. The margin of sampling error was plus or minus 2.8 percentage points for the overall sample and five percentage points for the Jewish adult sample.