Press Release

Poll: Operation Pillar of Defense Receives Broad Support of Israeli Public

Israeli Public Welcomes Efforts of Egyptian President Morsi, Support of US President Obama

POLL: OPERATION PILLAR OF DEFENSE RECEIVES BROAD SUPPORT OF ISRAELI PUBLIC

Israeli Public Welcomes Efforts of Egyptian President Morsi, Support of US President Obama

Wednesday, December 5, 2012, Israel Democracy Institute, 4 Pinsker St., Jerusalem – The latest Peace Index survey by the Israel Democracy Institute and Tel Aviv University reveals that the Israeli public overwhelmingly backed the recent military operation in Gaza.

Key findings of this poll of Israeli public opinion include:

  • An overwhelming majority (79%) believe that Operation Pillar of Defense was justified, including 84% of Israeli Jews and 47% of Israeli Arabs. Of Jewish Israelis, the vast majority of left-wing (74%), centrist (86%), and right-wing (89%) Israelis backed it.
  • A majority (57%) supported terminating the operation when it ended, but a sizeable minority (41%) did not. Notably, of the Jewish Israelis who supported ending the operation, the majority (53%) believe that the operation's goals were achieved; of the Jewish Israelis who did not support ending the operation, a large majority (69%) believe that the operation had not achieved its goals.
  • Concerning the role of international leaders in the conflict, a large majority (67%) of Israelis regard Egyptian President Muhammad Morsi's influence on the ceasefire negotiations between Hamas and Israel as very or somewhat positive. In addition, 58% of the public expressed favorable surprise at US President Barack Obama's supportive position during the operation.
  • In assessing state performance during the conflict, 88% of the public thought the Israel Defense Forces performed very or moderately well, while the municipal authorities and the national political leadership were regarded similarly by 82% and 60% of the public, respectively.
  • Concerning the implications of the operation for Israel's security, 37% of the public felt that deterrence was strengthened, 37% believe it remains unchanged, and only 18% believe that Israel's deterrence was weakened. 55% believe that the ceasefire will last either a few months or between half a year to a year, while 19% believe it will last longer than a year and 16% predict it will only last either a few days or a few weeks.

Full results of the Peace Index are available on the Peace Index website.

Conducted with 598 respondents which make up a representative sample of Israel's adult population, the survey was carried out between November 28 and December 2 and has a margin of error of 4.5%.

For more information or to schedule an interview with Peace Index Co-Director Prof. Tamar Hermann, contact:
Yehoshua Oz
IDI Director of International Communications
press@idi.org.il