NOVANEWS
Poll of American attitudes shows only slim majorities in support of U.S. military intervention in Iran or support for an I$raHelli strike.
Haaretz
Only 40 percent of Americans believe that the United States should support Israel if it were to attack Iran to stop its nuclear program, according to a new survey on American attitudes toward issues concerning Israel, the Middle East and Iran.
Nine percent of respondents to the survey said that the United States should oppose an attack on Iran by Israel and 48 percent said the United States should remain neutral.
Commissioned by the Anti-Defamation League, the 2013 Survey of American Attitudes on Israel, the Palestinians and the Middle East was released in New York on Tuesday.
Fifty percent of the respondents would support U.S. military action, if necessary, to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons – a slim plurality over the 41 percent who are opposed to such intervention. Similarly, 46 percent believe that sanctions against Iran should remain in place until it gives up its weapons program, with 42 percent opposed.
That said, the respondents to the survey displayed little trust in Iran. Eighty-one percent said they do not trust Iran when it says it will not develop nuclear weapons, while 74 percent said they did not believe Iran will abide by its public commitment not to develop nuclear weapons.
The results of the survey showed ambivalence about U.S. involvement in the region, alongside strong support for Israel, the ADL said in a statement.
That is borne out by the responses to questions about the Middle East peace process. A significant majority of Americans – 62 percent — said that Israelis and Palestinians should achieve peace by themselves, with minimal U.S. involvement. Only 29 percent said it could not happen without U.S. leadership.
At the same time, 76 percent of those polled said that Israel can be counted on as a strong U.S. ally, the highest figure in recent years, while 64 percent said they believe that Israel is serious in reaching a peace agreement with the Palestinians.
Personal attitudes were also strongly in Israel’s favor, with three times as many Americans expressing sympathy for Israel rather than for the Palestinians – 48 percent to 16 percent.
“This latest survey of the American people shows that Americans continue to see Israel as America’s closest ally in the Middle East and a willing partner for peace with the Palestinians,” said Abraham H. Foxman, ADL National Director. “American public sympathy for Israel in the conflict with the Palestinians is at an all-time high.”
Foxman added that the survey also indicated that “the American people want less U.S. involvement in the Middle East region, a position which has little to do with negative feelings toward Israel, but that can have negative consequences for the Jewish state.”
The American ambivalence about Middle East involvement was also clearly indicated in the responses to questions about Egypt and Syria. Given the widespread opposition to foreign aid in the U.S., it was not surprising that 67 percent of the respondents said they would support a U.S. decision to reduce military aid to Egypt, while only 27 percent said aid should not be reduced.
When asked who would do a better job in providing leadership for Egypt – the military or the Muslim Brotherhood — 64 percent of Americans responded that “neither” would provide positive leadership. Only 7 percent responded in favor of Muslim Brotherhood leadership, and 17 percent for the military.
On Syria, the American public opposes military action against Syria by a margin of 53-40, even if President Bashar Assad fails to destroy his chemical weapons. Similarly, a clear majority – 64 percent – is opposed to U.S. attempts to remove Assad from power.
The survey was conducted telephonically among 1,200 American adults nationwide on October 12-22. The margin of error is +/-2.8 percent.
