Israelis worried by declining US support for Israel

Overwhelming majority of Israelis say they are concerned by polling data showing a decline in support for Israel among Americans, with nearly half fearing US Jews are also distancing themselves from Israel.

By World Israel News Staff

An overwhelming majority of Israelis say they are concerned over the future of American support for Israel, amid polling data showing young Americans – including on the political right and among Evangelicals – are increasingly critical of the Jewish state and American support for it.

On Monday, the Ruderman Family Foundation published the results of a poll, conducted on December 11 by the Dialog Research agency among a sample of 1,002 Israeli Jews, which found that 78% of respondents are concerned about declining US support for Israel, adding that they believe the relationship between the two countries is either important or very important to Israel.

The poll also found that Israelis tend to believe that the declining US support for Israel will also lead to a weakening of ties between the Jewish state and young American Jewry.

Twice as many respondents (44%) believe the younger generation of American Jews will support Israel less than they do today, compared with just 22% who believe support will increase.

Older Israelis and secular respondents are significantly more likely than younger or more religious groups to anticipate a decline in future support.

These concerns are closely tied to perceptions of Israel’s recent policies. Asked about the impact of Israel’s conduct during the war in Gaza on American Jewish support, 43% of respondents believe it weakened support, compared with 28% who believe it strengthened it.

Similarly, 56% of Israelis believe relations between Israel and American Jewry have been harmed over the past two years to a great extent or to some extent.

“The data make clear that many Israelis understand something fundamental is changing,” said Jay Ruderman, president of the Ruderman Family Foundation.

“Over the past decade, our research has consistently pointed to growing gaps in how different communities relate to Israel and to one another, and this survey shows how those shifts are now being felt more acutely in Israeli public opinion.”

“The growing distance felt among younger generations in the United States did not happen overnight and cannot be dismissed. It reflects a longer-term erosion that requires Israel to pause, listen, and rethink how it engages American Jewry — because this relationship is not symbolic, but a strategic asset for the future of Israel and the Jewish people.”

The poll also reveals widespread skepticism among Israeli Jews regarding Israel’s contribution to the fight against antisemitism in the US.

Only 17% of respondents believe Israel contributes to combating antisemitism to a great or very great extent, while more than a third say its contribution is limited or nonexistent. Secular Israelis are significantly more likely than religious respondents to hold this view—reflecting broader gaps in how different communities assess Israel’s global Jewish role.

The survey comes following a slew of polls in the US showing softening support for Israel, particularly among younger Americans, with a growing number of younger Republicans becoming critical of Israel and American aid to the Jewish state.

In October 2025, a Pew Research released a poll which found that 59% of Americans now have an unfavorable opinion of Israel’s government, with just 26% saying that Israel has taken the right approach in responding to the 2023 invasion or has not gone far enough, with a plurality of 39% saying Israel has gone too far, up from 27% in December 2023.