Poll Shows Growing Extremism Among Palestinians

YERUSHALAYIM

A new poll indicates a growing extremism among Palestinians, as reflected in broader support for terrorism and a sharp drop in support for the two-state solution, The Times of Israel reported on Sunday.

According to the data, gathered by the Jerusalem Media and Communication Center in cooperation with the German foundation Friedrich Ebert Stiftung, Palestinians who expressed approval of so-called “armed resistance” against Israel was 35 percent, up from 30 percent last year.

Support for the two-state solution eroded drastically, to 35 percent, versus 49 percent in February 2017.

The percentage of Palestinians in favor of negotiations with Israel also dropped, from 37 percent a year ago to 25 percent at this time.

Meanwhile, the percentage of those who support a binational state has increased from 18 percent to 23 percent in the current poll.

The poll, which was conducted in Yehudah and Shomron and the Gaza Strip between January 27 and February 2, represents a random sampling of 1,200 people with a margin of error of three percent.

The Palestinian political fabric was also shown to be fraying. Trust in their political factions and personalities decreased. The percentage of those who do not trust any political personality rose to 52 percent, compared to 40 percent in another survey from August 2017.

In addition, the percentage of respondents who do not trust any political or religious faction rose to 53 percent in this poll after it was 42 percent in August last year.

Hamas and Fatah have lost popularity, the poll found. Support for Fatah has dropped from 25 percent to 23 percent, while support for Hamas dropped from 14 percent to a paltry nine percent.

Regarding the final status of Yerushalayim, the poll showed near unanimity, with 96 percent of respondents opposed to the establishment of a Palestinian state that would not have Yerushalayim as its capital.

Cynicism prevails. Over 55 percent of those surveyed said they did not expect the Palestinian leadership to implement its decisions to suspend recognition of Israel and halt security coordination between the PA security forces and the IDF. Another 54 percent said they expected the PA leadership to backtrack on its decision not to accept U.S. mediation in any peace process with Israel.

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