Poll: Most Americans say Israel has valid reasons to fight Hamas; young Americans far less supportive

A majority of Americans — 58 percent — believe that Israel has valid reasons for fighting Hamas, while just under four in ten US adults say Israel’s prosecution of the war has been acceptable, a new survey from the Pew Research Center finds.

The 34% of respondents who say Israel’s conduct in the war is unacceptable is less than the 38% who support how the Jewish state has fought Hamas, while the remaining 26% don’t know.

Just 22% of respondents say Hamas’s reasons for fighting Israel are valid and just 5% of them say the terror group’s October 7 attack was acceptable.

Respondents under 30 years old are significantly more critical of how Israel is fighting than older Americans, with 46% describing it as unacceptable, including 32% who call it completely unacceptable.

These younger respondents are similarly likely to say that Israel (38%) and Hamas (34%) have valid reasons for fighting.

Three in ten Americans (31%) sympathize entirely or mostly with the Israeli people, while 16% sympathize entirely or mostly with the Palestinian people and 26% say they sympathize with both sides equally. Another 18% are unsure where their sympathies lie.

Eight percent of Americans have a favorable view of Hamas, compared to 84% who have an unfavorable view. Twenty-three percent of respondents have a favorable view of the Palestinian Authority.

Twice as many Americans favor the US providing humanitarian aid to Gaza as those who oppose it, 50% vs. 19%.

Thirty-six percent are in favor of the US providing Israel with military aid, while 34% oppose it.

Only 20% want the US to play a major role in diplomatically resolving the conflict, with another 35% supporting a minor role.

Democratic respondents are divided over whether US President Joe Biden is tilting too far toward Israel’s position, with 34% saying he has, compared to 29% who say he’s striking the right balance and 3% who say he’s favoring the Palestinian position too much.

A plurality of Americans (40%) say the best outcome to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict would be a two-state solution.

Thirty-three percent of Republicans say they support a two-state solution, compared to 38% of Democrats. Support for a single state governed by Israel is up from 18% to 26% among Republicans.

Forty-one percent of respondents say they have a favorable view of the current Israeli government — down from 47% in 2022. The number who expressed “very unfavorable views” has doubled in that same period.

Nearly 13,000 US adults participated in the survey that took place last month. It has a margin of error of 1.5%.