Though more Americans favor the establishment of a Palestinian state, the number of Americans who oppose the proposal increased 5 percent, a Gallup poll shows. In the poll, 45 percent of Americans support Palestinian statehood in comparison to 42 percent who oppose. File Photo by Ismael Mohamad/UPI |
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Feb. 13 (UPI) -- On the topic of a two-state solution in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, 45 percent of Americans support Palestinian statehood in comparison to 42 percent who oppose, a Gallup poll shows.
The poll found the margin between those who support statehood and those who don't has narrowed from 7 percent in 2016 to 3 percent in 2017. This year the number of Americans who oppose a Palestinian state increased 5 percent due to fewer Americans having no opinion on the matter (13 percent, compared to 19 percent in 2016).
"As President Donald Trump talks about reaching a peaceful resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict that is 'good for all sides,' a new Gallup poll finds the American public closely split over one of the Palestinians' longtime demands -- Palestinian statehood," Gallup wrote in a statement.
Along political lines, Democrats are 61 percent in favor for the establishment of a Palestinian state, independents are 50 percent in favor and Republicans are 25 percent in favor.
More Americans, 62 percent, said they sympathize with Israelis more than with Palestinians, 19 percent. Nineteen percent of Americans said they have no preference, 5 percent said they sympathize with both equally, 6 percent said the sympathize with neither and 8 percent who said they do not have an opinion.
"Americans continue to sympathize more with Israel than the Palestinians in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and are now split over the merits of an independent Palestinian state. But much of this is driven by Republicans, who show extraordinarily high support for Israel and -- in contrast to Democrats -- lean against Palestinian statehood," Gallup wrote.
