JERUSALEM (Reuters) – Almost three in four Palestinians believe the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas on Israel was correct, and the ensuing Gaza war has lifted support for the Islamist group both there and in the West Bank, a survey from a respected Palestinian polling institute found.
The Palestinian Center for Policy Survey and Research (PCPSR) findings were published as international alarm grows over the spiralling Palestinian civilian toll in the Israeli counter-offensive against Hamas, now in its third month.
Seventy-two percent of respondents said they believed the Hamas decision to launch the cross-border rampage in southern Israel was “correct” given its outcome so far, while 22% said it was “incorrect”. The remainder were undecided or gave no answer.
Hamas, which is sworn to Israel’s destruction, has ruled Gaza since splitting with the Palestinian Authority (PA) in 2007. The PA exercises limited governance in the West Bank.
The PCPSR found that, compared to pre-war polling, support for Hamas had risen in Gaza and more than tripled in the West Bank, which has seen the highest levels in violence in years, with repeated deadly clashes between Israeli troops and settlers and Palestinians.
Fifty-two percent of Gazans and 85% of West Bank respondents – or 72% of Palestinian respondents overall – voiced satisfaction with the role of Hamas in the war. Only 11% of Palestinian voiced satisfaction with PA President Mahmoud Abbas.
Abbas has seen his popularity plummet amid an almost decade-long impasse in U.S.-sponsored negotiations on the creation of a Palestinian state alongside Israel.
Oct. 7 was the deadliest day for Israel in its 75 year history, with around 1,200 people killed and some 240 seized and taken as hostages into Gaza, according to Israeli tallies.
At least 18,608 Palestinians, including thousands under 18, have been killed in the Gaza war, according to the enclave’s health ministry. The majority of Gaza’s 2.3 million residents have been displaced by widespread Israeli strikes.
The PCPSR poll found that 44% of Gazans say they have enough food and water for a day or two, and 56% say that they do not. Almost two-thirds of Gazan respondents – 64% – said a member of their family had been killed or injured in the war.
(Writing by Dan Williams; Editing by Nick Macfie)
