August 2014 Peace Index
Majority of Israeli Jews Trust Egyptian President Sisi as Mediator with Hamas
44% of Israeli Jews Think All or Most Goals of Operation Protective Edge Were Achieved, 48% Think Some
The Israel Democracy Institute (IDI) and Tel Aviv University have released the monthly Peace Index poll, which this month covers Israeli public opinion in the aftermath of the withdrawal of ground forces in Operation Protective Edge.
Justness and Proportionality
- Justness of Operation Protective Edge: 92% of Israeli Jews think Operation Protective Edge was justified, while 7% think it was not justified. 62% of Israeli Arabs think the operation was not justified, and 24% think it was justified. (Israeli Jews who see the operation as just include 89% of the self-identified right, 97% of the moderate right, 93% of the center, 95% of the moderate left, and 67% of the left.)
- Use of Firepower: Among Jewish Israelis, 48% think the appropriate amount of firepower was used in Gaza, 45% think too little firepower was used, and 6% think too much firepower was used. 62% of Arab Israelis think too much firepower was used, 10% think too little firepower was used, and 3% think the appropriate amount of firepower was used.
Goals and Results
- Goals Set Before Launching the Operation: Among the Jewish public, 51% think the Israeli government had clear goals (14% very clear and 37% moderately clear) before launching Operation Protective Edge, while 47% think it did not have clear goals (37% not completely clear and 10% no clear goals at all) before. 53% of the Arab public think the government did not have clear goals (11% not completely clear and 42% no clear goals at all) before the operation, and 30% think the government did have clear goals (22% very clear and 8% moderately clear).
- Achievement of Goals: Of those who answered that the government had very clear, moderately clear, or not completely clear goals, 44% of the Jewish public believes that all or most of the goals set have been achieved, 48% think some of the goals have been achieved, and 6% think none have been achieved; 13% of the Arab public believes that all or most of the goals set have been achieved, 13% think only some of the goals have been achieved, and 65% believe that no goals have been achieved.
- Satisfaction with Results of the Operation: 32% of the Jewish public was satisfied with the results of Operation Protective Edge, 41% were neither satisfied nor dissatisfied, and 27% were dissatisfied. 64% of the Arab public was dissatisfied with the results of the operation, 18% were neither satisfied nor dissatisfied, and 8% were satisfied.
- Chances for Total Quiet: 71% of Israeli Jews and 49% of Israeli Arabs think chances are low that Operation Protective Edge will lead to three years or more of complete quiet from Gaza. 25% of Israeli Jews and 38% of Israeli Arabs think chances for complete quiet of at least three years is high.
Performance During Operation Protective Edge
- IDF Performance: 97% of Israeli Jews think the IDF’s performance was very or moderately good, while 3% rate it as not so good or poor. 64% of Israeli Arabs think the IDF’s performance was not so good or poor, and 16% think their performance was very or moderately good.
- Performance of the National Political Echelon: 61% of Jewish Israelis rate the performance of the national-political echelon as very or moderately good, while 35% rate it as not so good or poor. 44% of Arab Israelis rate the performance of national politicians as not so good or poor, and 26% rate their performance as very or moderately good.
- Criticism that the Operation Was Run Hesitantly: 54% of Israeli Jews and 39% of Israeli Arabs disagreed with cabinet members who criticized Prime Minister Netanyahu for running the operation too hesitantly or moderately. 42% of Israeli Jews and 33% of Israeli Arabs agree with the criticism that the operation was run too hesitantly or moderately.
- Media Professionalism: On a scale of 1 (very low) to 10 (very high), the Jewish public rated the media at 6.8, while the Arab public rated the media at 4.3.
- Unity of Jewish Population: On a scale of 1 (very low) to 10 (very high), Israeli Jews rated the resilience and unity of the Israeli Jewish population at 9.0, while Israeli Arabs rated the resilience and unity of the Israeli Jewish population at 4.3.
- Civic Responsibility of Israeli Arabs: On a scale of 1 (very low) to 10 (very high), Jewish Israelis rated the civic responsibility shown by the Israeli Arab population at 4.4, while Arab Israelis rated the civic responsibility shown by their community at 4.6.
Handling Hamas
- Whether to Accept Hamas’s Demands: Seeing that Hamas has made demands of Israel and threatened to continue to fire rockets at Israel if they are not met, 58% of Israeli Jews think Israel does not have to meet any Hamas demands and should continue to fight until Hamas surrenders, and 41% think Israel should respond positively to Hamas’s demands that are reasonable in terms of Israel’s national security. Only 0.4% of Israeli Jews think Israel should accept Hamas’s demands in order to stop the rockets. Among Israeli Arabs, 54% think Hamas’s demands consistent with Israeli national security should be accepted, 32% think Israel should accept Hamas’s demands in order to stop the rockets, and 5% think Israel should not accept Hamas demands and fight until their surrender.
- Dealing with Hamas Militarily or Diplomatically: 66% of the Jewish public think the best way to deal with Hamas is a combination of military and political-diplomatic efforts, while 26% think it should be handled exclusively through military means and 7% think through exclusively political-diplomatic means. 72% of the Arab public think Hamas should be dealt with through political-diplomatic efforts, 15% think through a combination of military and political-diplomatic means, and 3% think through exclusively military means.
International Community
- Egyptian President Sisi as Mediator: 60% of the Jewish public trusts Egyptian President Sisi to act as a fair mediator between Israel and Hamas, while 38% do not trust him to act so. 55% of the Arab public does not trust Sissi to act as a fair mediator between Israel and Hamas, and 31% do trust him to act fairly.
- The World Is Against Israel: 63% of Jewish Israelis and 45% of Arab Israeli think “the world is against us.” 35% of Jewish Israelis and 42% of Arab Israelis think it is not true. (Jewish Israelis who think “the world is against us” include 69% of the right, 60% of the moderate right, 66% of the center, 52% of the moderate left, and 31% of the left.)
Additional Findings
- Freedom of Expression During War: Excluding revealing military secrets, 58% of Israeli Jews and 45% of Israeli Arabs think it is necessary to limit freedom of expression when it comes to expressing criticism of an operation during the course of it. 39% of Israeli Jews and 42% of Israeli Arabs think it is unnecessary to limit criticism of a military operation during the course of the operation.
- Political Self-Identification: When asked to place themselves on the political spectrum for foreign policy and security issues, 34% of Israeli Jews self-identified as part of the right, 28% as moderate right, 22% as center, 9% as moderate left, and 3% as left.
- Optimism or Pessimism about the Future of Israel: 65% of the Jewish public is optimistic about the future of Israel for the coming years, while 33% are pessimistic. 47% of the Arab public is pessimistic about Israel’s future over the coming years, and 40% are optimistic. (Jewish Israelis who are optimistic include 71% of the right, 67% of the moderate right, 69% of the center, 61% of the moderate left, and 54% of the left.)
This survey, conducted on August 11-12, 2014, included 600 respondents who constitute a representative sample of the adult population of Israel. The maximum measurement error for a sample of this size is ±4.1%.
The full results of the Peace Index are available on the Peace Index website.
For more information or to schedule an interview with Peace Index Co-Director Prof. Tamar Hermann, contact:
Yehoshua Oz
Director of International Communications
press@idi.org.il