60% of Israelis support total victory against Hamas even if not all hostages are returned

Only 5% of Israelis said they thought the Palestinian Authority should rule Gaza after the war. 

Vered Weiss, World Israel News

According to an Institute for National Security Studies (INSS) survey, 60% of Israelis believe the war should continue until Hamas is eliminated even if that means that not all of the hostages return.

According to reports, the current impasse in a hostage agreement is caused by Hamas leaders’ demand that Israel commit to a permanent ceasefire and a complete withdrawal of the IDF from Gaza.

Israeli Prime Minister has rejected this condition, and insists that the war must continue until Israel achieves a “total victory” over Hamas.

When asked if they think Israel should accept Hamas’s condition to end the war to secure the return of hostages, 60% said the IDF should continue to fight and reject a hostage deal that would stipulate the end of Israeli military operations in Gaza.

Regarding the control of the Gaza Strip after the war, only 5% of Israelis said they thought the Palestinian Authority should rule the area.

However, 34% of Israelis said they would approve of a PA leader who recognized Israel an was assisted with an international presence, but 44% would not agree with the PA ruling Gaza even if it were reformed.

The Biden Administration has urged Israel to accept a situation in which a “revitalized” Palestinian Authority should rule Gaza, and Netanyahu has rejected this scenario.

The Israeli’s public’s trust in the IDF is still high at 86%, but lower than at the beginning of the war.

By way of comparison, the trust in the police force is 57% and only 24% of Israelis say they trust the government.

The number of Israelis who are confident the IDF will win the war with Hamas has declined from 92% at the beginning of the war to 78%.

Also, there is a growing belief that the Israeli government’s decisions aren’t coming entirely from security considerations (64%).

When asked whether the government’s decisions regarding hostages are based on objective rather than political considerations, 56% disagreed.

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