Americans suprisingly neutral on Israel-Hezbollah conflict
July 26, 2006
Americans Favor Neutral U.S. Stance on Israel-Hezbollah Conflict
Half say peace in Middle East should be very important U.S. foreign
policy goal
by Jeffrey M. Jones Page: 1, 2 Next GALLUP NEWS SERVICE
PRINCETON, NJ — Most Americans say the United States should not take
either side in the current conflict between Israel and the Hezbollah
group in Lebanon. Still, a new USA Today/Gallup poll finds that half
of Americans say the development of peace in the Middle East should
be a very important U.S. foreign policy goal. More Americans
disapprove than approve of the way George W. Bush has handled the
situation, and most do not believe the Bush administration has a
clear plan in regards to the Middle East. Forty-nine percent of
Americans are very concerned that the U.S. military will be drawn
into the conflict.
Taking Sides
Sixty-five percent of Americans favor a neutral U.S. position in the
conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, according to the July 21-23
poll. Thirty-one percent say the United States should take Israel’s
side, while less than 1% believes the United States should side with
Hezbollah.
Americans have long favored a neutral U.S position in the ongoing
conflict between Israel and the Palestinians, so the current results
are in line with past opinion on similar matters. However, the 31% of
Americans who favor a pro-Israeli stance in regards to the Hezbollah
situation is higher than what Gallup has typically observed in the
past for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and even exceeds the
support for Israel on this measure recorded immediately after the
9/11 terrorist attacks.
Not all Americans are equally in favor of neutrality between Israel
and Hezbollah. Republicans, who have shown strong support for Israel
in Gallup polls over the last several years, are twice as likely as
Democrats or independents to say the United States should side with
Israel. In fact, a greater percentage of Republicans support a pro-
Israel stance than a neutral one.
The poll asked Americans how concerned they were about various events
happening as a result of the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah.
Of the six items tested, Americans expressed the greatest concern
that the U.S. military will be drawn into the conflict, with 49%
saying they are very concerned about this. Forty-four percent are
very concerned that the fighting will increase the likelihood of
terrorism against the United States. A slightly smaller percentage
expressed worry about broader wars erupting in the Middle East.
Seeking Middle East Peace
Despite favoring a neutral position in the current conflict,
Americans do see a role for the United States in helping to achieve
Middle East peace. According to the poll, half say “the development
of a peaceful solution to the Arab-Israeli situation” should be a
very important foreign policy goal of the United States. An
additional 35% say it is somewhat important, and only 15% do not
believe it is important. These results are little changed from June
2003, when the question was last asked.
Since the 9/11 terror attacks, there has been a growing sense that
the United States should make Middle East peace a priority. Prior to
9/11, an average of 40% of Americans thought this should be a very
important U.S. foreign policy goal. Since then, an average of 52% has
said so.
Republicans, independents, and Democrats are about equally likely to
endorse assigning a high priority to Middle East peace on the U.S.
foreign policy agenda.
The United States Response
So far, Americans are giving George W. Bush low marks for his
handling of the situation. Just 37% approve and 56% disapprove of how
he has handled “the situation in the Middle East.” That matches
Bush’s overall job approval rating of 37%, suggesting he is rated no
better, or worse, on this specific issue than he is more generally.
Those who are following the Israeli-Hezbollah conflict closely give
Bush more favorable evaluations — 41% approve of his handling the
situation in the Middle East, compared with 28% who are not following
it closely.
Americans do not think the Bush administration has a clear and well-
thought out policy on the Middle East. Sixty-seven percent say it
does not, while 27% believe it does. Gallup last asked this question
in June 2002, at which time 35% said the Bush administration had a
clear and well-thought out Middle East policy.
Survey Methods
These results are based on telephone interviews with a randomly
selected national sample of 1,005 adults, aged 18 and older,
conducted July 21-23, 2006. For results based on this sample, one can
say with 95% confidence that the maximum error attributable to
sampling and other random effects is ±3 percentage points. In
addition to sampling error, question wording and practical
difficulties in conducting surveys can introduce error or bias into
the findings of public opinion polls.
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