Middle East

In the Middle East situation, are your sympathies more with the Israelis or more with the Palestinians?

	Israelis	Palestinians	Both (vol.)	Neither (vol.)	No opinion
	%	%	%	%	%
2008 Feb 11-14	59	17	4	10	10
2007 Feb 1-4	58	20	5	10	7
2006 Feb 6-9	59	15	5	13	8
2005 Feb 7-10	52	18	7	12	11
2004 Feb 9-12	55	18	7	12	8
2003 May 19-21	46	16	12	14	12
2003 Feb 3-6	58	13	6	11	12
2002 Sep 2-4	47	14	6	19	14
2002 Jun 21-23	49	14	8	19	10
2002 May 20-22	49	15	7	19	10
2002 Apr 22-24	47	13	9	18	13
2002 Apr 5-7	50	15	9	17	9
2002 Mar 8-9	43	14	6	20	17
2002 Feb 4-6	55	14	6	14	11
2001 Dec 14-16	51	14	5	17	13
2001 Sep 14-15	55	7	4	20	14
2001 Aug 10-12	41	13	7	18	21
2001 Feb 1-4	51	16	7	14	12
2000 Oct 13-14 ^	41	11	9	18	21
2000 Jul 6-9	41	14	5	18	22
2000 Jan 25-26	43	13	5	21	18
1999 Jul 22-25	43	12	11	19	15
1998 Dec 4-6	46	13	5	22	14
1997 Aug 12-13	38	8	5	19	30
1996 Nov 21-24	38	15	6	14	27
1993 Sep 10-12	42	15	6	17	20
1991 Feb	64	7	19	--	10
1989 Aug	50	14	15	--	21
1988 May 13-15	37	15	22	--	27

(vol.) = Volunteered response
^ Based on interviews with 821 national adults; ±4 pct. pts.
May 1988-April 2002 and February 3-6, 2003 WORDING: In the Middle East situation, are your sympathies more with the Israelis or more with the Palestinian Arabs?

Do you think George W. Bush is -- or is not -- doing enough to find a peaceful solution to the conflict between the Israelis and Palestinians?

	Yes, is	No, is not	No opinion
2008 Feb 11-14	46%	47	7
2007 Feb 1-4	44%	51	5
2002 Jun 7-8	61%	28	11

In order to resolve the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, do you think the United States should -- [ROTATED: put more pressure on the Palestinians to make the necessary compromises (or) put more pressure on the Israelis to make the necessary compromises]?

	More pressure on the Palestinians	More pressure on the Israelis	More pressure on both (vol.)	Not put more pressure on either (vol.)	No opinion
2008 Feb 11-14	38%	25	15	10	11
2007 Feb 1-4	39%	30	11	10	10
(vol.) = Volunteered response

Next, I'd like your overall opinion of some foreign countries. First, is your overall opinion of [ISRAEL or THE PALESTINIAN AUTHORITY] very favorable, mostly favorable, mostly unfavorable, or very unfavorable?

Israel

	Very favorable	Mostly favorable	Mostly unfavorable	Very unfavorable	No opinion
	%	%	%	%	%
2008 Feb 11-14	23	48	18	7	5
2007 Feb 1-4	22	41	22	8	7
2006 Feb 6-9	21	47	18	5	9
2005 Feb 7-10	19	50	20	5	6
2004 Feb 9-12	14	45	25	10	6
2003 Feb 3-6	22	42	23	6	7
2002 Feb 4-6	16	42	25	10	7
2001 Feb 1-4 ^	18	45	20	12	5
2000 Mar 17-19	16	46	20	8	10
2000 Jan 25-26	11	43	21	7	18
1999 May 7-9	15	53	19	6	7
1999 Feb 8-9	18	48	16	7	11
1996 Mar 8-10	17	45	18	11	9
1992 Feb 6-9	12	36	27	16	9
1991 Nov 21-14	11	36	26	11	16
1991 Sep 26-29	11	45	25	9	10
1991 Aug 8-11	15	47	19	6	12
1991 Mar 14-17	20	49	16	7	8
1991 Jan 30-Feb 2	28	51	10	3	8
1989 Aug 10-13	11	34	29	16	10
1989 Feb 28-Mar 2	8	41	25	13	13

The Palestinian Authority

	Very favorable	Mostly favorable	Mostly unfavorable	Very unfavorable	No opinion
	%	%	%	%	%
2008 Feb 11-14	1	13	47	28	11
2007 Feb 1-4	2	14	46	29	9
2006 Feb 6-9	1	10	49	29	10
2005 Feb 7-10	3	24	43	19	11
2004 Feb 9-12	2	13	44	32	9
2003 Feb 3-6	1	12	44	29	14
2002 Feb 4-6	3	11	44	32	10
2001 Feb 1-4 ^	4	18	39	24	15
2000 Jan 25-26	3	18	36	16	27

Do you think there will or will not come a time when Israel and the Arab nations will be able to settle their differences and live in peace?

	Yes, there will come a time	No, there will not	No opinion
	%	%	%
2007 Nov 30-Dec 2	34	63	3
2007 Feb 1-4	34	63	3
2006 Jul 21-23	27	68	4
2006 Feb 6-9	32	65	3
2005 Feb 25-27	40	56	4
2005 Feb 7-10	49	48	3
2004 Nov 19-21	37	60	3
2003 Jun 12-15 ^	38	60	2
2003 May 19-21	51	46	3
2002 Apr 5-7	36	61	3
2002 Feb 4-6	37	59	4
2001 Aug 10-12	32	64	4
2001 Feb 1-4	41	56	3
2000 Jan 25-26	49	45	6
1999 Jul 22-25	49	47	4
1998 Dec 4-6	40	56	4
1997 Aug 12-13	36	56	8

^ Asked of a half sample

As you may know, former President Jimmy Carter recently published a book on the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. How closely have you been following the news about this book -- very closely, somewhat closely, not too closely, or not at all?

	Very closely	Somewhat closely	Not too closely	Not at all	No opinion
2007 Feb 1-4	6%	15	26	53	1

From what you have heard or read, do you have a mostly favorable, neutral, or mostly unfavorable opinion of Carter's new book?

	Mostly favorable	Neutral	Mostly unfavorable	No opinion
2007 Feb 1-4	17%	40	18	24

As a result of the recent developments in the Middle East related to the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah, do you think -- [RANDOM ORDER] -- has improved or gotten worse?

2006 Aug 18-20 (sorted by "improved")	Improved	Gotten worse	No difference (vol.)	No opinion
	%	%	%	%
The power of the Hezbollah group in Lebanon	35	44	3	17
The security of Israel	31	52	7	10
The image of the United States in the Middle East	17	70	8	5
The prospect for long-term peace in the Middle East	16	71	8	5

What role do you think the U.S. should play in developing a peace agreement between Israel and Hezbollah? Do you think the U.S. should -- take the leading role, let the United Nations take the leading role but still be involved, or not get involved at all?

Do you think the United States should play a major role or a minor role in the development of a peace agreement?

COMBINED RESPONSES: ASKED OF A HALF-SAMPLE

	2006 Aug 18-20
	%
United States should take leading role	14

United Nations take leading role, but U.S. still involved	56
(U.S. should play major role)	(21)
(U.S. should play minor role)	(35)

United States should not get involved at all	29

No opinion	2

(Asked of a half sample) Do you think the recent ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah in the Middle East -- [ROTATED: marks the beginning of a long-lasting peace between Israel and Hezbollah, (or) will only be temporary and fighting will soon break out again between Israel and Hezbollah]?

	Beginning of long-lasting peace	Only temporary	No opinion
2006 Aug 18-20	6%	91	3

Do you think the United States supports [ITEM A READ FIRST, THEN ITEMS B-C READ IN RANDOM ORDER] -- [ROTATED: too much, about the right amount, or too little]?

A. Israel

	Too much	Right amount	Too little	No opinion
	%	%	%	%
2006 Jul 28-30	38	44	11	8
2003 May 30-Jun 1	32	48	12	8
2002 Jun 7-8	43	40	10	7
2002 Apr 5-7	35	49	10	6
2002 Mar 1-3	38	48	11	3
2001 Dec 14-16 ^	31	51	10	8
2001 Oct 19-21	29	58	9	4

^ Asked of a half sample

B. Lebanon

	Too much	Right amount	Too little	No opinion
2006 Jul 28-30	25%	32	28	15

C. The Palestinians

	Too much	Right amount	Too little	No opinion
2006 Jul 28-30	33%	32	22	14

How closely have you been following the news about the attacks going on in Israel and Lebanon -- very closely, somewhat closely, not too closely, or not at all?

	Very closely	Somewhat closely	Not too closely	Not at all	No opinion
2006 Jul 28-30	27%	40	23	10	--
2006 Jul 21-23	28%	43	22	6	*

Which comes closest to your view of Israel's current military action in Lebanon -- [ROTATED: Israel is justified in all of the military action it has taken so far, Israel is justified in taking some military action, but has gone too far, or Israel is not justified in any of the military action it has taken]?

	Justified in all military action taken	Justified, but gone too far	Not justified in any military action taken	No opinion
2006 Jul 28-30	37%	44	10	9
2006 Jul 21-23	33%	50	7	9

Do you think the United States is doing -- [ROTATED: too much, about the right amount, or not enough] -- to resolve this conflict?

	Too much	Right amount	Not enough	No opinion
2006 Jul 28-30	19%	43	32	7

Which of the following positions should the U.S. take in the current conflict between Israel and the Hezbollah group in Lebanon -- [ROTATED: the U.S. should press for an immediate ceasefire, the U.S. should allow the conflict to go on a while longer before pressing for a ceasefire, (or) the U.S. should not get involved in pressing for a ceasefire at any point in the conflict]?

	Immediate ceasefire	Allow conflict to go on a while longer	Not involved at any point	No opinion
2006 Jul 28-30	32%	20	43	5

Do you think the Bush administration has a clear and well-thought out policy on the situation in the Middle East, or not?

	Yes, does have	No, does not	No opinion
	%	%	%
2006 Jul 21-23	27	67	7
2002 Jun 21-23	35	60	5
2002 Apr 5-7	48	47	5
2002 Apr 3 ^	41	48	11

^ One-night poll; polls conducted entirely in one day, such as this one, are subject to additional error or bias not found in polls conducted over several days.

How much do you blame -- [RANDOM ORDER] -- for the current attacks in Israel and Lebanon -- a great deal, a moderate amount, not very much, or not at all?

Israel

	Great deal	Moderate amount	Not very much	Not at all	No opinion
2006 Jul 21-23	15%	30	21	23	11

Hezbollah

	Great deal	Moderate amount	Not very much	Not at all	No opinion
2006 Jul 21-23	53%	23	7	5	12

Iran

	Great deal	Moderate amount	Not very much	Not at all	No opinion
2006 Jul 21-23	39%	31	13	6	10

Syria

	Great deal	Moderate amount	Not very much	Not at all	No opinion
2006 Jul 21-23	29%	36	13	6	15

Lebanon

	Great deal	Moderate amount	Not very much	Not at all	No opinion
2006 Jul 21-23	27%	38	15	9	11

Do you approve or disapprove of the military action Israel has taken in Lebanon?

	Approve	Disapprove	No opinion
2006 Jul 21-23	50%	38	12

Do you approve or disapprove of the military action Hezbollah has taken in Israel?

	Approve	Disapprove	No opinion
2006 Jul 21-23	11%	76	13

Do you favor or oppose the use of Israeli ground troops in an invasion of southern Lebanon?

	Favor	Oppose	No opinion
2006 Jul 21-23	40%	47	12

In the current conflict, do you think the United States should take Israel's side, take the side of Hezbollah, or not take either side?

	Israel's side	Hezbollah's side	Not take either side	No opinion
2006 Jul 21-23	31%	*	65	4

As far as you are concerned, should the development of a peaceful solution to the Arab-Israeli situation in the Middle East be a very important foreign policy goal of the United States, a somewhat important goal, not too important, or not an important goal at all?

	Very important	Somewhat important	Not too important	Not at all important	No opinion
2006 Jul 21-23	50%	35	8	7	1

How concerned are you that each of the following will happen as a result of the current fighting between Israel and Hezbollah -- are you -- very concerned, somewhat concerned, not too concerned, or not at all concerned -- that -- [RANDOM ORDER]?

It will lead to a broader war including Syria, Iran, or both countries

	Very concerned	Somewhat concerned	Not too concerned	Not at all concerned	No opinion
2006 Jul 21-23	42%	37	13	5	3

The United States' military will be drawn into the conflict

	Very concerned	Somewhat concerned	Not too concerned	Not at all concerned	No opinion
2006 Jul 21-23	49%	27	14	8	2

It will lead to a broader war throughout the Middle East, involving all or most of the Arab countries in that region

	Very concerned	Somewhat concerned	Not too concerned	Not at all concerned	No opinion
2006 Jul 21-23	41%	38	14	6	2

It will result in a nuclear attack somewhere in the Middle East

	Very concerned	Somewhat concerned	Not too concerned	Not at all concerned	No opinion
2006 Jul 21-23	33%	31	24	11	2

It will increase the likelihood of terrorism against the United States

	Very concerned	Somewhat concerned	Not too concerned	Not at all concerned	No opinion
2006 Jul 21-23	44%	31	17	6	2

It will develop into World War III

	Very concerned	Somewhat concerned	Not too concerned	Not at all concerned	No opinion
2006 Jul 21-23	34%	27	23	15	1

As you may know, the Palestinians recently held elections to elect a new government. Do you happen to know which political party won those elections -- [ROTATED: Hamas (or) Fatah] -- or are you unsure?

	Hamas	Fatah	Unsure	No answer
2006 Feb 6-9	48%	2	49	1

What do you think U.S. policy toward the Palestinian Authority should be? Do you think the U.S. should -- [ROTATED: conduct diplomatic relations with the Hamas government regardless of whether or not it recognizes Israel as a country, conduct diplomatic relations with Hamas only if it recognizes Israel as a country, or not conduct diplomatic relations with the Hamas government at all]?

	Regardless of recognizing Israel	Only if recognizes Israel	No relations at all	No opinion
2006 Feb 6-9 ^	22%	44	25	9

^ Asked of a half sample

What do you think U.S. policy toward the Palestinian Authority should be? Do you think the U.S. should -- [ROTATED: give financial aid to the Palestinian Authority regardless of whether or not the Hamas government recognizes Israel as a country, give financial aid to the Palestinian Authority only if Hamas recognizes Israel as a country, or not give any financial aid to the Palestinian Authority while the Hamas government is in power]?