Poll: US Jews back IDF conquest of Gaza City, overwhelmingly oppose deal leaving Hamas in power

American Jews increasingly concerned war against Hamas leaving Israel ostracized internationally, with half of US Jews saying they feel compelled to hide their Jewishness when  traveling.

By World Israel News Staff

A plurality of American Jews back Israel’s plans to take over Gaza City, a new poll says, while the overwhelming majority of US Jews reject any deal ending the war which would leave the Hamas terror organization in power.

On Tuesday, the Jewish People Policy Institute released a survey conducted earlier this month of American Jews, polling their opinions on the war in Gaza, Jewish identity in public, and Israel’s international standing.

Just over half (51%) of respondents said they conceal their Jewishness when traveling in unfamiliar environments, though most ultra-Orthodox Jews said they do not, with 53% saying they never hide their identity when traveling, and 18% saying they rarely or never travel.

Most American Jews (53%) plan to attend synagogue services more than once during the upcoming High Holidays season, while 18% said they plan to attend services at least once.

American Jews back the IDF’s plan, approved by the security cabinet earlier this month, to capture Gaza City, with 47% of respondents backing the operation, compared to 34% who say the takeover is a mistake.

Jewish Trump voters overwhelmingly back the plan, with 85% saying they support the capture of Gaza City, while only 26% of Kamala Harris’ Jewish voters agreed, with 49% calling the operation a mistake.

An overwhelming majority of American Jews, however, oppose any deal ending the war in Gaza which fails to remove Hamas from power, with just 10% saying Israel should stop the war even if it meant leaving Hamas in control of the coastal enclave.

The poll also found that less than one-third (32%) of American Jews feel Israel is “winning or has won” the war in Gaza, compared to about half (48%) of Israeli Jews in this month’s JPPI poll of Israelis.

By comparison, 37% of American Jews and 30% of Israeli Jews said they feel Israel is not winning the war in Gaza.

US Jews are more likely than their Israeli counterparts to express concern that the war in Gaza is leading to the ostracism of Israel globally, with 75% of American Jews and 62% of Israeli Jews saying they are worried about this possibility.

Respondents in the poll of American Jews were nearly evenly divided on whether Israel should take the impact on Diaspora Jews into account when planning its actions in Gaza, with 47% saying the IDF must take repercussions on Jews abroad into account, compared to 45% who said Israel should not.

“The survey shows that the way the war is being managed directly and significantly impacts Diaspora Jews’ sense of insecurity in their own homes,” said JPPI President Prof. Yedidia Stern.

“Almost half of them expect the State of Israel to take this into account, but in practice, this voice is not represented in Israel’s decision-making processes.”