Majority of Israelis Feel the World is Against Them, Poll Shows

A poll shows Israelis feel the world is against it and holds it to a double moral standard.

A newly published poll conducted among Israelis this past month shows that Israelis feel the world is against them, that the Jewish state suffers from abuse by the international community and that it is held to a double standard.

The Monthly Peace Index, conducted by the Israeli Democracy Institute (IDI), shows that the Jewish public perceives a deterioration in Israel’s international status. This awareness seemingly stems from the intensification of voices calling to boycott Israel and its institutions, the pollsters explain.

A large majority, 69 percent, characterize Israel’s relationship with other countries as not good at all or not so good, with only 29 percent viewing these relations as moderately good or very good.

Interestingly enough, among the Arab-Israeli respondents, a reverse majority of 58 percent regards Israel’s relations with the world as very good or moderately good. This may stem from the widespread view on the Palestinian street that despite criticism of Israel, ultimately the countries of the world accept its policy as evidenced by the fact that they do not act against it, the survey authors believe.

This means, they say, that the international community has failed to exert pressure on Israel to change its policies.

A clear majority – 71 percent – of the Jewish public agrees with the statement, “The countries of the world make demands for moral behavior on Israel that they do not make on other countries that are in situations of conflict.”

In other words, there is a widespread sense among the Jewish public that “the whole world is against us,” the researchers say.

The European Union (EU) and other countries are working to boycott products manufactured in Judea and Samaria, but the Israeli public is clearly opposed to such actions, the poll shows.

As to whether they would or would not refrain from buying goods produced in the Jewish communities of Judea and Samaria were a consumer boycott to be organized in Israel, a large majority of the Jews, 79 percent, responded that they would continue to purchase those products.

A breakdown on the results within the Knesset shows that only among the extreme left-wing Meretz voters does the majority, 71 percent, say they would join a boycott of products from Judea and Samaria.

By: United with Israel Staff