Israel's Gaza op finds strong support among Americans, polls show

Nearly half of respondents in NBC poll say Hamas is responsible for recent round of violence...

Polls published in the United States in recent days show that nearly half of Americans see Hamas as responsible for the recent eruption of violence, and a majority believes that Israel's actions were justified.

In a Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll, 44 percent of respondents said they believed the IDF's actions were justified and were intended to defend Israel, while 34 percent said the United States should continue to favor Israel's interests over the Palestinians'. Fifty-three percent said the United States should treat both sides evenly, and 4 percent said the Palestinians should be favored.

In a CBS poll, 34 percent said Hamas is to blame for the recent conflagration, while only 6 percent said Israel was responsible. However, nearly half of the respondents said that both sides are equally to blame for the violence.

Of the respondents blaming Hamas for the conflict, 54 percent were Republican voters, 24 percent Democratic voters and 32 percent did not affiliate themselves with either party.

Polls conducted in late July by Gallup and the Pew Research Center found that support for Israel is weaker among younger Americans and Democrats than among Americans generally.
http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/1.609253
6/8/14