Poll: Most Israelis believe government’s decision to expand the war politically motivated

A majority of Israelis believe that the Israeli government’s decision to expand the ongoing war in Gaza is motivated by political considerations, and not genuine security concerns.

Asked in a poll aired on Channel 12 what the reason for the government’s decision earlier this week to expand the war, 54 percent of respondents said political reasons, while just 36% said substantive reasons. Ten percent of respondents said they weren’t sure.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s far-right coalition partners have threatened to collapse the government if he agrees to end the war, even if it secures the release of the remaining hostages. The premier has rejected this exchange, arguing that it would leave Hamas in power.

Just 25% of respondents agree with the government’s prioritization of destroying Hamas above freeing the remaining hostages. Sixty-one percent of respondents said freeing the hostages and ending the war should be the priority. Fourteen percent said they weren’t sure.

Seventy-eight percent of Israelis oppose the government’s refusal to launch a state commission of inquiry into the failures that allowed Hamas’s October 7 onslaught to unfold. Thirteen percent of Israelis back the government’s decision to hold off on such a probe and focus on expanding the war in Gaza. Nine percent weren’t sure.

Sixty-nine percent of the public is in favor of enlisting ultra-Orthodox yeshiva students who have long enjoyed blanket exemptions. Seventeen percent are against drafting Haredim and 14% said they weren’t sure.