Anti-Israel sentiment growing among Americans: Pew research

Public opinion in the United States is shifting increasingly against the Israeli government, according to a new Pew Research Center survey.

The poll, released on Friday, found that six in ten Americans now hold an unfavorable view of Israel’s government — a rise that researchers say has accelerated since Israel’s war against Hamas began on October 7, 2023.

The survey shows that 39% of Americans believe Israel is using “too much force” in its military campaign against Hamas — up from 31% in September 2024 and 27% in December 2023. Overall, 59% now view Israel’s government negatively, an 8% increase from earlier this year.

Only 16% of respondents said Israel is on the right track, while 10% believe its military response has not gone far enough. The rest were unsure.

When asked about the Trump administration’s handling of the Gaza conflict, 42% said they disapprove, compared with 30% who support it. Meanwhile, 36% believe Trump is “too biased” toward Israel, up from 31% in March. Only 2% said Trump is showing favor toward the Palestinians.

Roughly one-third of Americans think the US is giving Israel too much military aid, while 23% say the current level is appropriate and 8% say it is insufficient.

On the other hand, opinions differ when it comes to US assistance for Palestinian civilians: only 9% believe Washington is providing too much aid, 20% say it is the right amount, and 35% believe the support is far too little.

Nearly 80% of Americans expressed concern over food shortages in Gaza and the high civilian death toll from Israeli airstrikes. 69% said they are worried about Palestinians being forced to flee Gaza by Israeli troops.

Similarly, 80% are concerned about the continued detention of Israeli hostages, and 73% fear that Hamas could launch another attack on Israel in the future.

Partisan divides remain strong: Democrats are more concerned about the suffering of Palestinians, while Republicans are more worried about future Hamas attacks. However, both parties share similar concern over the hostage issue.

Negative views of Hamas are widespread — 84% of Americans hold an unfavorable opinion of the group, while 68% view the Palestinian Authority negatively.

Despite growing criticism of Israel’s government, 56% of Americans still have a favorable view of the Israeli people, compared to 52% who feel positively about Palestinians. Favorable views of Israelis, however, have dropped 8 percentage points in the past year and 11 points since 2022. Among Democrats and left-leaning independents, 70% express sympathy toward Palestinians, while only 37% of Republicans and right-leaning voters do so.

Only 18% of Democrats view Israel’s government favorably, compared to 55% of Republicans.

Younger Americans (ages 18–29) are also more critical of US military aid to Israel — 42% say the US is providing too much assistance, while only 24% of adults aged 65 and older share that view.

The survey, conducted September 22–28 among 3,445 US adults, has a margin of error of ±1.9 percentage points. It was carried out before the Trump administration announced its 20-point Gaza peace proposal.