Survey finds 60 percent of Americans view Israel unfavourably following Iran war
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Elis Gjevori
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Wed, 04/08/2026 - 08:18
American support for Israel is collapsing across party lines, with even young Republicans turning against Israel
A person holds a sign supporting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as people wave flags and chant during a gathering of Iranian monarchists outside the Consulate General of Israel in Los Angeles, on 5 March 2026 (Patrick T Fallon/AFP)
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A new Pew Research Center survey, conducted weeks into the US-Israeli war on Iran - found that six in 10 Americans now hold an unfavourable view of Israel, up from 53 percent last year and by nearly 20 points since 2022.
The pace of the shift in attitudes is sustained and is accelerating collapse in support for a country that Washington has bankrolled, armed and shielded for decades.
The numbers for Benjamin Netanyahu are just as stark. Around six in 10 Americans have little or no confidence in the Israeli prime minister to do the right thing on world affairs - up 7 points since last year and nearly 20 points since 2023.
The survey, conducted in late March and published on Tuesday evening, comes just as a ceasefire was announced between Iran and the US.
Around half of Democrats now say they have no confidence in Netanyahu at all, up from 37 percent last year.
The generational split is where the data becomes more striking for Israel's long-term standing in America.
In both political parties, a majority of adults under the age of 50 now rate Israel and Netanyahu negatively.
Among young Republicans - a group that was reliably pro-Israel just a few years ago - 57 percent now hold an unfavourable opinion of Israel, up from 50 last year.
Only 30 percent of Republicans under 50 have confidence in Netanyahu.
Eight in 10 Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents currently have an unfavourable view of Israel, up from 69 percent last year and 53 percent in 2022.
The share of Americans with a very unfavourable view of Israel has nearly tripled from 10 percent in 2022 to 28 percent today.
The survey was conducted as Israeli and American forces were a month into a war on Iran - a conflict that has killed more than 3,000, driven oil prices skyward, and damaged key civilian infrastructure.
Anger and surprise in Israel after US-Iran ceasefire
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Perceptions of Israel have also been influenced by high-profile voices incresingly pointing out its influence in US politics.
Before the survery was conducted, in mid-March a senior Trump administration official in the directorate of national intelligence resigned over the war on Iran, saying that the US president was tricked into the conflict by an Israeli and pro-war “echo chamber”.
“I cannot in good conscience support the ongoing war in Iran. Iran posed no imminent threat to our nation, and it is clear that we started this war due to pressure from Israel and its powerful American lobby,” Joseph Kent, the director of the National Counterterrorism Center, wrote in his resignation letter.
The centre is responsible for all US government intelligence on threats and is overseen by the director of national intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard.
Similarly, in late March, a group of anti-war military veterans slammed what they say are Israeli interests guiding US military policy.
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