Strong majority of Americans support Israel-Hamas hostage deal

Nearly three-quarters of the American public supports short-term humanitarian pauses in the fighting between Israel and Hamas in Gaza in order to allow for the release of hostages, a survey from the Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA) found.

Some 72% of respondents favored humanitarian pauses, as did 69% of Jewish Americans. 

On the other hand, 20% of respondents were in favor of an immediate, unconditional ceasefire, an outcome favored by 16% of Jewish Americans.

60% of all respondents and 64% of Jewish respondents said that the release of all hostages held by Hamas should be a precondition for a long-term ceasefire. Hamas being removed from power was viewed as a precondition to a long-term ceasefire by 51% of Americans and 58% of Jewish Americans. In a similar vein, 46% of the general public, and 61% of Jewish Americans identified Hamas's "disarmament" as a precondition for a ceasing of hostilities.

"It's clear that the vast majority of Americans understand that an end to the fighting must be tied to releasing the hostages and making Israel safer by removing Hamas from power," said Mimi Kravetz, the Chief Impact and Growth Officer for Jewish Federations of North America. "Understanding these fundamental and widely held views is critical for our policymakers as they work to represent their communities."

The researchers surveyed 1,290 American adults, 843 of whom were Jewish, on November 19 and 20, 2023.

The respondents consisted of a random subset of those who participated in a previous JFNA survey of 3,777 Americans including 2,199 Jewish Americans, which was conducted between October 29 and November 1.

The war's strong emotional impact on American Jews

JFNA reported new data from that survey, revealing additional support for Israel's war effort as well as that the war had a strong emotional effect on Jewish respondents. That survey found that Hamas deserved the greatest amount of blame for obstructing peace according to 39% of Americans and 50% of Jewish Americans. 10% of Americans and 13% of Jewish Americans blamed other Middle Eastern countries such as Iran, while 15% and 4% respectively said Israel deserved the brunt of the blame.

On the question of Israel's right to exist as a Jewish state, 76% of respondents and 91% of Jewish respondents replied in the affirmative, 13% and 4% respectively said Israel did not have the right to exist as a Jewish state, and 11% and 5% respectively said they did not know or were not sure. 

The emotional effect of Hamas's shocking attack on October 7 and the subsequent war has been significant, with 88% of Jewish respondents saying they had been emotionally affected by the war - 57% by "a great deal."

Roughly half of American Jews said that there are two or fewer degrees of separation from someone who had been killed, injured, or displaced due to the war. About 30% of Jewish participants said the war has made it harder for them to feel comfortable sharing their views with non-Jewish friends.

When asked how they would best describe Hamas's initial attack, all respondents most commonly replied with "terrorism," "barbaric," "massacre," and "war crimes." In contrast, the terms most associated with Israel's response were "justified" and "self-defense."

While the research reveals strong levels of support for Israel among the American public, more demographic-specific research has found that support for Israel among young people is far weaker. A Harvard CAPS/Harris poll in October found that over a quarter of Americans aged 18-24 believed that the best solution to the Israel-Palestinian conflict would be for Israel to be "ended and given to Hamas and the Palestinians."