In a survey conducted this month among a sample of 663 Israeli Jews, 72% of respondents said they would not agree to an Israel Defense Forces withdrawal to the pre-Oct. 7, 2023, Gaza border without a security perimeter inside the Strip.
The data, with the Jewish People Policy Institute (JPPI) published on Monday, comes from surveys conducted on Sept. 1 and 3 for the Israeli Society Index.
Among Jewish respondents, 55% indicated they might agree or do agree that Israel “occupy the entire Gaza Strip and administer it through the IDF for at least several years.” Forty percent of Jewish respondents said they would not agree “under any circumstances.” Arab Israeli respondents overwhelmingly opposed occupation under any circumstances at 69%, compared to 63% who expressed opposition to the prospect in a similar JPPI survey published last year.
The survey also demonstrated greater optimism among Jews compared to last year’s survey. Last year, only 36% of Jewish respondents agreed with the assertion that “Israel is improving, and things will get even better,” compared to 43% this month.
The survey had a sample of 206 Arab respondents. Last year, 6% of the Arab respondents expressed optimism compared to 5% this year.
A majority of Jewish respondents (56%) said the rise of antisemitism internationally should not cause Israel’s government to change its policies, representing a very small change over 2025 (57%).
Asked about the upcoming election and the main candidates’ suitability to serve as prime minister, 46% of Jewish respondents said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was best suited, followed by Gadi Eisenkot with 29% and Naftali Bennett with 14%.
Among Arabs, only 11% indicated Netanyahu was best suited, trailing Eisenkot (27%). A quarter of Arabs said “someone else” was best suited to be prime minister.
