Israeli society unites on religion, torn over military issues since October 7 - Pew poll

Israeli society has become more united religiously and politically during the Israel-Hamas war, but it has also become more divided on military and policy issues since the start of the war, according to a Pew Research Center study released on Thursday.

Showing how Israeli religious and non-religious Jews have united during wartime, the study reflected that 18% of Israelis now believed there to be strong conflicts between religious and non-religious people—a number that went down 29% from when asked the same question last year.

Unity versus division during the war

Additionally, the political left and right have unified during the war, as the study reflected that only 24% of Israelis perceived strong conflicts between those on the left and right—a number down 32% from the past year.

Conversely, the study showed how Israeli public opinion has become more polarized, resulting in division between Arab Israelis and Jewish Israelis due to differing views on institutions such as the IDF and regarding policy issues.

While Jewish Israelis trust the national government to do what is right for Israel more than they did in 2017—61%, up from 53%,  Arab Israelis trust it less—23%, down from 44%.

Furthermore, Israeli Jews think the military has a positive influence on the way things are going in Israel, while only 34% of Israeli Arabs agree. "This gap has grown significantly since we last asked the question in 2007, when 77% of Israeli Jews and 57% of Israeli Arabs said the military’s influence was positive," the study showed.

In terms of Israeli division as a whole, there still remains a great divide over whether the building of Jewish settlements in the West Bank helps or hurts Israel's security. 40% of the population said the building helps, while 35% believed the settlements to be harmful. 

Pessimistic about the future of Israel 

In addition, the study found that 50% of Israelis have become more pessimistic about how their political system works, with only 35% of Israelis claiming to be optimistic. 

In 2019, Arabs and Jews were almost equally pessimistic about the political system. However, the study showed that now 69% of Arabs have become pessimistic, a number that went up from the previous 57%.

In contrast, Jews have become less pessimistic about the political system, standing at 44%—a number down from the previous 55%.

Israelis have become more divided on the prospect of Arabs and Jews living together peacefully,  with equal shares saying they are optimistic (37%) and pessimistic (37%) about sharing the land.