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Defense &
National Security
Defense &
National Security
The Big Story
Disapproval of Israel-Hamas war growing in US
A majority of Americans now disapprove of Israel’s war against Palestinian militant group Hamas in Gaza, with support dropping from 50 percent in November to 36 percent this month, according to a new poll.
© Getty
The number who disapprove increased from 45 percent in November to 55 percent in March, while about 9 percent of respondents in the latest Gallup poll have no opinion on the issue.
But approval of Israel’s war is divided along party lines, with 64 percent of Republicans supporting the military action in Gaza, compared to just 18 percent of Democrats.
Among independents, support for Israel’s military action in Gaza dropped from 47 percent to 29 percent in the same time frame.
Protests calling for a cease-fire and to protect Palestinian lives have become commonplace across the U.S., while others say Israel has a right to defend itself against Hamas, which invaded the country on Oct. 7 and killed more than 1,100 people, taking roughly 250 hostages with 100 believed to be still alive in custody in Gaza.
But the nearly six-month war shows no end in sight, even as more than 32,000 Palestinians have been killed and the United Nations is warning of a famine in northern Gaza.
Democrats are growing furious at the death toll and humanitarian crisis, especially with Arab Americans and young voters promising a protest vote at the polls in November. About 13 percent of Democrats in the primary for Michigan, a key battleground state in November, voted “uncommitted” instead of for President Biden.
The Biden administration is trying to get more humanitarian aid into Gaza while it is also taking a harder stance on the war, abstaining this week from a United Nations Security Council resolution that called for an immediate cease-fire for the next two weeks and the release of hostages. Netanyahu canceled a delegation to Washington after the vote, but the White House has since said his office had agreed to reschedule.
Biden and key members of his Cabinet are also pushing for Israel to reconsider a major ground operation in the southern Gaza city of Rafah, where more than a million Palestinians are sheltering from the war.
Read the full report at TheHill.com.
Welcome to The Hill’s Defense & National Security newsletter, I'm Ellen Mitchell — your guide to the latest developments at the Pentagon, on Capitol Hill and beyond.
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