970x125
Americans’ support for Israel has reversed nearly two years after the war in Gaza began, with more people now backing Palestinians than the Jewish state, according to a new poll.
The major shift saw 35% of more than 1,300 registered voters say they side with Palestinians, just above the 34% who said they support Israel, according to the latest New York Times and Siena University poll.
It marks the first time more respondents said they supported Palestinians over Israelis since the New York Times began polling voters about their sympathies in 1998.
The latest results stand in wide contrast to where the majority of people aligned themselves following the Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist attack, when Hamas killed more than 1,200 people in Israel and kidnapped 251 others, kickstarting the war in Gaza.
In the aftermath of the massacre, 47% of people said they sided with Israel, with only 20% standing by Palestinians. The rest said they were either unsure or backed both sides equally.
With the war approaching its third year, Americans’ opinions have shifted in the face of widespread destruction and looming famine in Gaza, with now six out 10 respondents saying Israel should end its military campaign — even if it means failing to eliminate Hamas or free all the hostages.
The results of the survey have echoed concerns that support for Israel would wane if the war in Gaza drags on and the civilian casualties continue to increase.
With civilian deaths in Gaza making headlines every day, about 40% of Americans now believe Israel is intentionally killing civilians in Gaza, more than double of those who believe civilian deaths are unintentional, according to the Times/Siena poll.
The death toll in Gaza surpassed 66,000 on Monday, according to the Hamas-run Ministry of Health, which does not differentiate between civilians and terrorists.
The majority of voters under the age of 30, regardless of political party, are also now less likely to back support for Israel. Nearly 70% of them said they opposed economic or military aid flowing from the US to Israel.
The biggest change came with Democrats, with an overwhelming 54% now saying they sympathize more with Palestinians, a far leap from the 31% when the war first began.
Many cited the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and the impact it has had on children as the primary reason as why their opinions have shifted.
“As a mother, seeing those children is horrifying,” Shannon Carey, a Democrat from Connecticut, told the Times. “This isn’t a war. It’s a genocide.”
While Republicans seemed to overwhelmingly support Israel and President Trump’s stance on providing military aid, their numbers, too, have waned over the past two years.
At the start of the war, 76% of Republicans supported Israel, but now, only 64% are still supporting the Jewish state.
