From the Liveblog of
Friday, May 3, 2024
Poll: 54% of Israelis believe hostage deal more important than Rafah operation
A slim majority of Israelis believe that securing a deal to release over 100 hostages held by terror groups since October 7 is more important than launching a planned IDF operation in the southern Gaza city of Rafah, according to a new poll.
The Maariv poll, conducted by Panel4All, finds that 54 percent of Israelis support a hostage deal over the looming Rafah operation (38%).
Breaking down the results, the poll shows that 79% of right-wing voters support the Rafah operation, while 81% of respondents who vote for center-left parties support a hostage deal.
The poll comes as Israel waits for Hamas’s response to its latest offer for a hostage and truce deal and considers starting the long-promised military operation in Rafah, where over one million Palestinians are sheltering amid the ongoing war.
