Israel at War | Surveys

A special survey assessing public opinion on matters of national security, presented at IDI's annual conference on Security and Democracy. The survey found support for a mandatory draft, and significant economic penalties for those who do not serve.

Israelis are deeply divided on how to move forward in the conflict in Lebanon. While 54% of Jewish Israelis support continued fighting against Hezbollah, 88% of Arab Israelis are in favor of pursuing a diplomatic solution.

A public opinion survey marking the first anniversary of the October 7th attacks and one year into the "Iron Swords" war.

Jewish Israelis are broadly united (90%) in their belief that launching an in-depth offensive against Hezbollah is the correct move, while the largest share of Arab Israelis (47%) think it was not. A large majority of Israelis, over 70%, think both the IDF and Israel's civilian population would be able to withstand an extended war on two or more fronts.

Israelis are divided on the question of the main reasons for Netanyahu's demand that Israel continues to control the Philadelphi Corridor. While over half of the Jewish respondents (58.5%) think this decision is based on military and strategic considerations, 66.5% of Arab-Israeli respondents thing it is due to political reasons. 

Across the Left, Right and Center, rates of Jewish Israelis who say the feel "anger," "disappointment" or "frustration" are considerably higher than those expressing satisfaction, pride, or trust. A large majority of Israelis (70%) support the establishment of an inquiry into the events of Oct. 7th, but do not agree on the timing of such an inquiry. 

Across the total sample, 56% of Israelis support a deal to release all the hostages and end the war in Gaza; 29.5% support a deal to release some hostages in exchange for a temporary ceasefire; 14.5% don't know.

Across the issues of US-relations, the war in Gaza, evacuees from the south and the north, fighting Hezbollah, and public diplomacy efforts abroad—both Jewish and Arab Israelis give the government low grades.

The majority of the Jewish public (56%) think that securing a deal for the release of the hostages is the highest priority; a higher share of Jewish respondents think Trump would be better for Israel as US president; most Israelis think that celebrations of Israel's 76th Independence Day should be more restrained and less prominent this year.

After more than six months of war, we found that among both Jewish (58%) and Arab Israelis (81%) there is widespread agreement that now that the majority of Israeli forces have left the Gaza Strip, the time has come for those who were responsible for the failure of October 7 to resign from their positions.

Slightly more than half of Jewish respondents think that the government is doing all it can to bring the hostages home; only a minority of Arabs concur. Only a minority of Israelis think the government will complete its four-year term and a majority of Israelis think that Hamas has succeeded in refocusing international attention on the Palestinian problem.

The majority of Israelis gave Prime Minister Netanyahu low ratings (57%), while IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi topped the rankings of positive performance (48%). More than two-thirds of Israelis think we are on the verge of an all-out-war with Hezbollah – 69%.

Most Israelis would like to see the exemption given to the Haredi community changed; when asked whether the Israel can continue relying on the US's support, public opinion was divided, with an inclination toward continued reliance; around half of Israelis think Israel's standing in the international arena is not good.

Most Israelis think Palestinian terrorism will remain the same or increase if a Palestinian state were declared. A vast majority (81%) of Israelis think the likelihood of reform in the Palestinian Authority is low, while a majority of Israelis think absolute victory in Gaza is unlikely.

59% of Jewish Israelis oppose a deal that would lead to the establishment of a Palestinian state with guarantees from the US and peace agreements with Arab states such as Saudi Arabia; when asked to choose, 51% of Israelis said they think the main goal of the war should be bringing the hostages home and 36% think it should be toppling Hamas; half of Israelis think the ICJ ruling, issuing temporary measures, to be harsh.

Most Jewish Israelis expect the war to continue for months, while a majority of Jewish respondents oppose a deal for the release of the hostages in return for the release of all Palestinian prisoners and a cessation of the fighting in Gaza. Meanwhile, over 60% of Israelis claim that their personal lives have returned to normal. 

This survey was conducted in order to assess public opinion regarding the preferred economic policy in light of the war in Gaza, to identify the main areas of concern to the public, and to examine the public’s views on various social issues.

About two-thirds (66%) of Israelis say they do not think Israel should agree to US demands to shift to a phase of the war with a reduced heavy bombing in populous areas. 75% of Jewish Israelis oppose meeting the demands, compared to only 21% of Arab Israelis.

56% of all Arab Israelis say the attack by Hamas on October 7 does not reflect Arab society, the Palestinian people, and the Islamic nation. 33% say it does and 11% are unsure.

Two thirds of Israelis do not think that the government currently has a clear plan of action for the next day and the majority, even on the right, believe elections should be held as soon as the war ends. Even so, no significant movement is currently indicated between the political blocs. 

Among Jewish Israelis, 75% on the Left support making progress toward a two-state solution to the conflict in return for American assistance, compared to 45% in the Center and only 21% on the Right.

IDI's fifth War in Gaza survey finds that among Jewish Israelis, toppling Hamas and releasing the hostages are pivotal war-goals. The majority of respondents do not think that the government currently has a clear action for the day after the fighting ends, and there is rising support (56%) for an amendment to the Nation-State Law, to safeguard equality for non-Jewish citizens. 

A majority of the Jewish public think the government's focus on the judicial overhaul had a critical impact on the timing of Hamas' Oct. 7th attack. Support for negotiations for the release of the hostages in Gaza has risen, but most think the fighting should not stop. 

The October 2023 edition of the Israeli Voice Index shows that a significant majority of Jewish Israelis trust the heads of the IDF over PM Netanyahu. If elections were to be held today, a majority of Israelis (55%) would vote for the same bloc they voted for in the last elections.

Despite being at war, more Israelis are optimistic about the future of the country than earlier this year, yet most Israelis (64%) fear for their physical safety or that of their immediate family members.

A new survey by the Israel Democracy Institute's Viterbi Center for Public Opinion examined what should be the highest priority in terms of Israeli national interest: military action in Rafah or a deal to release the hostages held by Hamas.