Public Attitudes Toward Israel’s War With Hizballah

Territorial Issues

"Do you believe that Israel's attacks on Lebanon have been targeted to Hezbollah strongholds and strategic areas, or have teh attack sbeen generally indiscriminate?" (Greenberg Quinlan Rosner)

	7/27/06	8/3/06
Have Been Targeted	61%	68%
Generally Indiscriminate	22%	21%
Don't Know	17%	12%

"What do you think motivates the actions of Israel in Lebanon and Gaza? Protecting itself from attack OR pursuing expansionist policies into Palestinian and Arab lands?" (Greenberg Quinlan Rosner, August 2006)

Protecting itself from attack	74%
Pursuing expansionist policies into Palestinian and Arab Lands	16%
Both/Neither	3%
Don't Know	6%

"Which countries are the main providers of support for Hezbollah's terrorist activities?" (Greenberg Quinlan Rosner)

	7/16/06-7/18/06	9/6/06-9/11/06
Iran	53%	38%
Syria	32%	36%
Lebanon	12%	13%
Iraq	9%	4%
Saudi Arabia	5%	3%
Palestine	1%	2%
Don't Know	38%	46%

"I'm going to ask you about each group and please tell me whether they are acting properly or going too far. 'Israel in dealing with Hezbollah and Lebanon". (Approximate dates. Greenberg Quinlan Rosner)

	7/17/06	7/19/06	7/27/06	8/03/07 (After Qana)	9/10/07 (After Ceasefire)
Acting Properly	45%	47%	49%	49%	45%
Going Too Far	40%	38%	41%	41%	42%
Don't Know	16%	15%	10%	9%	4%

If the ceasfire does not hold, who will be most at fault? (Greenberg Quinlan Rosner, September 2006)

Hezbollah	34%
The United Nations	17%
Lebanon	10%
Israel	9%
Europe	1%
Don't Know	24%

Was Israel justified in invading Lebanon in the wake of the kidnapping of two of its soldiers by Hezbollah?* (UPI/Zogby International, December 4-6, 2006)

Israel was justified	57.6%
Israel was not justified	31.1%

*Not the exact question wording

Do you think the United States should play a major role or a minor role in the development of a peace agreement? (Gallup, August 18-20, 2006)

U.S. should play major role	21%
U.S. should play minor role	35%

What role do you think the U.S. should play in developing a peace agreement between Israel and Hezbollah? Do you think the U.S. should -- take the leading role, let the United Nations take the leading role but still be involved, or not get involved at all? (Gallup, August 18-20, 2006)

United States should take leading role	14%
United Nations take leading role, but U.S. still involved	56%
United States should not get involved at all	29%
No opinion	2%

As a result of the recent developments in the Middle East related to the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah, do you think -- [RANDOM ORDER] -- has improved or gotten worse? (Gallup, August 18-20, 2006)

	Improved	Gotten worse	No Difference	No opinion
The power of the Hezbollah group in Lebanon	35%	44%	3%	17%
The security of Israel	31%	52%	7%	10%
The image of the United States in the Middle East	17%	70%	8%	5%
The prospect for long-term peace in the Middle East	16%	71%	8%	5%

Do you think the recent ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah in the Middle East -- [ROTATED: marks the beginning of a long-lasting peace between Israel and Hezbollah, (or) will only be temporary and fighting will soon break out again between Israel and Hezbollah]? (Gallup, August 18-20, 2006)

Beginning of long-lasting peace	6%
Only temporary	91%
No opinion	3%

How much do you blame each of the following for the fighting and killing that has taken place in Israel and Lebanon? (Harris Interactive, August 8-17, 2006)

	Great Deal	A Lot	Some	None
Hezbollah	58%	23%	17%	3%
Lebanese government	23%	32%	38%	7%
Israeli government	22%	26%	38%	14%

Do you think Israel's military reaction to the situation in the Middle East has gone too far, not gone far enough, or been about right? (CNN August 2-3, 2006)

Too far	32%
Not far enough	18%
About right	41%
No opinion	8%

Which of the following statements comes closer to your view of what Israel should do: (CNN August 2-3, 2006)

Israel should continue taking military action until Hezbollah can no longer launch attacks against Israel	46%
Israel should agree to a cease-fire as soon as possible	44%
No opinion	10%

Do you consider __ an ally of the United States, friendly but not an ally, unfriendly towards the U.S., or an enemy of the United States? (CNN August 2-3, 2006)

	Israel	Lebanon	Hezbollah
Ally	49%	9%	3%
Friendly, but not an ally	33%	37	14%
Unfriendly	6%	27%	22%
Enemy	4%	15%	47%
No opinion	7%	11%	14%

Do you think the United States is doing: too much, about the right amount, or not enough to resolve this conflict? (Gallup Poll, July 28-30, 2006)

Too much	19%
About the right amount	43%
Not enough	32%
No opinion	7%

Which of the following positions should the U.S. take in the current conflict between Israel and the Hezbollah group in Lebanon? (Gallup Poll, July 28-30, 2006)

Immediate Ceasefire	32%
Allow the conflict to go a while longer	20%
Not Involved at any point	43%
No opinion	5%

How much attention are Americans paying to the violence in the Middle East? (Gallup Poll)

	July 21-23, 2006	July 28-30, 2006
Very/Somewhat Closely	71%	67%
Not too/Not at all closely	28%	33%

What is your perception of Israel’s current military action in Lebanon? (Gallup Poll)

	July 21-23, 2006	July 28-30, 2006
Justified in all military action taken	33%	37%
Justified, but gone too far	50%	44%
Not justified in any military action taken	7%	10%
No opinion	9%	9%

In the current conflict, do you think the United States should take Israel’s side, take the side of Hezbollah, or not take either side? (Gallup Poll, July 21-23, 2006)

	Gallup 7/21-23/06	CNN 8/2-3/06*
Israel’s side	31%	68%
Hezbollah's side	<0.5%	6%
Both		3%
Neither side	65%	11%
No opinion	4%	11%

*CNN Based on what you have read or heard about the conflict in the Middle East, are your sympathies MORE with Israel or MORE with Hezbollah?

How much do you blame _____ for the current attacks in Israel and Lebanon? (Gallup Poll, July 21-23, 2006)

Hezbollah	53%
Iran	39%
Syria	29%
Lebanon	27%
Israel	15%

Degree of blame for current attacks in Israel and Lebanon? (Gallup Poll, July 21-23, 2006)

	Great Deal/Moderate Amount	Not very much/Not at all
Hezbollah	76%	12%
Iran	70%	19%
Syria	65%	19%
Lebanon	65%	24%
Israel	45%	44%

Do you approve or disapprove of Israel’s actions in this conflict? (Gallup Poll, July 21-23, 2006)

Approve	50%
Disapprove	38%
No opinion	12%

Do you approve or disapprove of Hezbollah’s actions in this conflict? (Gallup Poll, July 21-23, 2006)

Approve	11%
Disapprove	76%
No opinion	13%

How strongly do you feel about your approval or disapproval of Israel and Hezbollah? (Gallup Poll, July 21-23, 2006)

	Israel	Hezbollah
Approve strongly	28%	3%
Approve not strongly	22%	8%
Disapprove not strongly	23%	24%
Disapprove strongly	15%	52%

Do you support or oppose a possible invasion of southern Lebanon by Israeli ground troops? (Gallup Poll, July 21-23, 2006)

Support	40%
Oppose	47%
No opinion	13%

Concern about Events Occurring as a Result of the Current Fighting Between Israel and Hezbollah? (Gallup Poll, July 21-23, 2006)

	Very concerned	Very/Somewhat concerned
United States' military will be drawn into the conflict	49%	76%
Increase the likelihood of terrorism against the United States	44%	75%
Broader war including Syria, Iran, or both countries	42%	79%
Broader war in the Middle East, involving all/most Arab countries in region	41%	79%
Develop into World War III	34%	61%
Result in a nuclear attack somewhere in the Middle East	33%	64%

How important is the development of a peaceful solution to the Arab-Israeli situation? (Gallup Poll, July 21-23, 2006)

Very Important	50%
Somewhat Important	35%
Not Important	15%

Do you approve or disapprove with the way President George W. Bush is handling the situation in the Middle East? (Gallup Poll, July 21-23, 2006)

Approve	37%
Disapprove	56%
No opinion	7%

Do you believe the Bush administration has a clear and well-thought out policy on the Middle East? (Gallup Poll, July 21-23, 2006)

Yes	27%
No	67%
No opinion	6%

Should the United States play an active role in attempting to solve the Middle East Crisis between Israel and Hezbollah? (Opinion Research Corp., July 19, 2006)

Yes	65%
No or No opinion	35%

Do you support or oppose the presence of U.S. ground troops as part of an international peacekeeping force on the border between Israel and Lebanon? (Opinion Research Corp., July 19, 2006)

	Opinion Research Corp 7/19/06	CNN 8/2-3/06*
Support/Favor	45%	51%
Oppose	42%	45%
No opinion	13%	4%

*CNN: Would you favor or oppose the presence of U.S. ground troops, along with troops from other countries, in an international peacekeeping force on the border between Israel and Lebanon?

Do you approve or disapprove of the way in which President Bush has handled the conflict? (Opinion Research Corp., July 19, 2006)

	Opinion Research Corp 7/19/06	CNN 8/2-3/06*
Approve	38%	43%
Disapprove	45%	46%
Unsure	17%	10%

*CNN: Do you approve or disapprove of the way George W. Bush is handling: :The conflict between Israel and Hezbollah in the Middle East

In the conflict, are your sympathies more for Israel or Hezbollah? (Opinion Research Corp., July 19, 2006)

Israel	57%
Hezbollah	4%
Neither	20%
Both	4%
No opinion	15%

What is your opinion regarding Israel’s military reaction to the situation? (Opinion Research Corp., July 19, 2006)

About Right	35%
Too Far	31%
Too Restrained	14%
Unsure	20%

Do you believe a cease-fire should be negotiated? (Opinion Research Corp., July 19, 2006)

Israel should agree to a cease-fire as soon as possible	43%
Israel should continue its military action until Hezbollah can no longer launch attacks	39%
No opinion	18%

Are you more worried that the conflict will lead to violence and possibly a terrorist attack in the United States? (Opinion Research Corp., July 19, 2006)

Yes	51%
No	35%
No opinion	14%

Do you believe the United States has done a good or poor job evacuating its citizens from Lebanon? (Opinion Research Corp., July 19, 2006)

Good	53%
Poor	29%
Unsure	18%