New poll shows declining trust in Israeli government, army

ISTANBUL

An opinion poll on Sunday revealed a sharp decline in public trust in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, his government, and the army.

A survey by the Institute for National Security Studies, a Tel Aviv-based research institution, showed that 76% of Israelis have lost trust in Netanyahu's government, which has been in power since December 2022.

It found that public trust in the government fell from 30% to 23% during Israel’s 12-day war on Iran, which broke out on June 13, while trust in Netanyahu himself dropped from 35% to 30%.

According to the poll, the war on Iran also affected citizens’ trust in the Israeli army, as it dropped from 83% to 77%.

Confidence in Army Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir also fell from 69% to 62%, and in the army spokesperson, from 63% to 56.5%.

The survey showed that 28% of Israelis don’t believe in the possibility of a victory in the Gaza Strip, and only 53% see the army’s main goals of ending Hamas’ rule and returning hostages as totally or mostly achieved.

Tel Aviv estimates that 50 Israeli captives remain in Gaza, including around 20 believed to be alive.

The Israeli opposition and hostages’ families have accused Netanyahu of prolonging the war to appease his far-right coalition partners and maintain power.

The poll also showed that 42% of the Israeli citizens rule out the possibility of achieving Israel’s war goals partially or totally.

According to the survey, 61% of Israelis believe that the army’s current strategy in Gaza doesn’t facilitate the return of hostages from the enclave, while only 20.5% said that the current policy contributes to the elimination of Hamas, and 25.5% think the current strategy helps both to eliminate Hamas and return captives.

The poll also showed that Israeli society is divided over the failure to reach a ceasefire and hostage swap agreement in Gaza. While 52% blame the government fully or partially for the impasse, 45% blame Hamas entirely.

Another split was recorded in the public opinion regarding the disarmament of Hamas, as 52% believe that it is possible, and 41.5% don’t believe it could be achieved.

Hamas stressed on Saturday that it will not give up its arms unless an “independent, fully sovereign” Palestinian state is established.

Rejecting international calls for a ceasefire, the Israeli army has pursued a brutal offensive on Gaza since Oct. 7, 2023, killing more than 60,400 Palestinians, most of them women and children.

Last November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.