U.S. Jewry’s Positions in Line with ZOA

The 2011 American Jewish Committee (AJC) Annual Survey of American Jewish Opinion has found for the first time that a majority of American Jews (55%) oppose the creation of a Palestinian state, whereas only 38% support its creation. In contrast, in the 2010 AJC Survey, only 45% opposed creating a Palestinian state, while 48% favored its creation. In the 2009 AJC Survey, 41% opposed creating a Palestinian state, whereas 49% favored its creation. 

The Survey also found that an overwhelming 76% of American Jews agree with the statement that ‘The goal of the Arabs is not the return of occupied territories but rather the destruction of Israel,’ whereas only 19% disagree with it. Also, a clear majority of 59% of American Jews oppose re-dividing Jerusalem in the context of an Israeli-Palestinian peace treaty, while only 37% favor this course. Also, a majority of 53% disapprove of President Obama’s handling of U.S./Israel relations, whereas only 40% approved of his performance in this sphere.

The Survey also recorded the following results:

·         A plurality of 48% of American Jews disapprove of President Barack Obama handling of the presidency, while only 45% approve.

·         Similarly, a plurality of 48% of American Jews disapproved of President Obama’s handling of foreign policy, while 47% approved.

·         Conversely, 54% of American Jews approved of the Netanyahu government’s handling of U.S./Israel relations, whereas only 32% disapproved.

·         Large majorities of American Jews regard anti-Semitism as a problem in the Arab-Muslim world (99%), Europe (92%) and the U.S. (84%).

·         88% of American Jews disapprove of Palestinian efforts to unilaterally seek recognition of Palestinian statehood at the U.N. without signing a peace agreement with Israel, as opposed to a mere 9% who approve.

·         An overwhelming 73% of American Jews favor the Congress withdrawing U.S. aid to Mahmoud Abbas’ Palestinian Authority (PA) if it forms a unity government with Hamas, whereas only 21% would oppose this.

·         A near-unanimous 96% of American Jews believe the Palestinians must accept Israel as a Jewish state in any final peace settlement that might be signed, with only 3% dissenting.

·         56% of American Jews favor the U.S. taking military action against Iran if diplomacy fails to halt its march towards acquiring nuclear weapons, whereas only 38% oppose this.

·         68% of American Jews favor Israel taking military action against Iran if diplomacy fails to halt its march towards acquiring nuclear weapons, whereas only 26% oppose this (AJC 2011 Annual Survey of American Jewish Opinion, September 6-21, 2011). 

ZOA National President Morton A. Klein said, “The latest AJC Survey is notable for the clear erosion of American Jewish support for Palestinian statehood. In two years, support for creating a Palestinian state has fallen among American Jews by 11 percentage points to 38%, while opposition to creating a Palestinian state has risen by 14 percentage points to 55%. American Jewish organizations claiming to represent majority American Jewish opinion need to reconsider their support for creating a Palestinian state by negotiations.”

“It is important to note that most American Jews today hold the same positions that ZOA has held for 18 years since the Oslo Accords were signed. ZOA can now respectfully and accurately state that we may now better represent the views of most American Jews than any other major American Jewish organization.”