GALLUP NEWS SERVICE
PRINCETON, NJ -- The latest CNN/USA Today/Gallup poll shows the vast majority of Americans would prefer that the United States not take either side in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, consistent with earlier trends. The public generally approves of the way President Bush is handling the situation, even though a plurality of Americans believe he is favoring the Israelis in the dispute, and half of Americans believe he does not have a clear and well-thought- out policy in the Middle East.
Americans Prefer That United States Not Take Sides in Middle East
The poll, conducted April 29-May 1, shows that Americans continue to favor a neutral U.S. stance in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Consistent with earlier polls dating back to 1998, two-thirds of Americans say the United States should not take either side in the dispute. This is in spite of frequent Gallup polls that show Americans' sympathies in the Middle East are more likely to be with the Israelis than with the Palestinians. About one-quarter of Americans believe the United States should take Israel's side -- about where this percentage has been for the last several months, but up slightly from polls taken between 1998 and 2000. Only 2% of Americans say the United States should side with the Palestinians.
| Middle East Conflict: Should the United States Take Sides? |
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A majority of all key subgroups favors the neutral position, though Republicans and conservatives are more likely than other groups to favor the United States' taking Israel's side than remaining neutral.
Public Approves of Bush's Handling of Situation, if Not His Policies
President Bush has been criticized by some for lacking a firm policy in the Middle East -- first calling for an immediate withdrawal of Israeli troops from Palestinian territories, but then not imposing any sanctions on Israel when it did not meet these demands (Israel has withdrawn from several key areas in recent days). The latest poll shows that 50% of Americans do not believe Bush has a clear and well-thought-out policy on the Middle East, while 43% say he does. Last month, Americans were about evenly divided in their views.
| Do you think the Bush administration has a clear and well-thought-out policy on the Middle East? |
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Additionally, Americans perceive that President Bush is favoring the Israelis in the dispute (45%), rather than remaining neutral (43%) or favoring the Palestinians (4%). Nevertheless, more than seven in 10 Americans say they approve of the way Bush is handling the situation in the Middle East. The current figures are similar to the recent polls on this topic.
| Approve of the Way George W. Bush Is Handling the Middle East Situation? |
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Americans Favor U.N. Investigation of Refugee Camps
The United Nations recently decided to abandon its plan to investigate Israeli military action that took place in a Palestinian refugee camp in Jenin. After Israel delayed access to the camp for several days over concern about the makeup of the investigative team, the Israeli Cabinet finally voted to refuse the U.N. mission. When asked about the dispute, Americans say they agree with the United Nations (62%) more than with Israel (28%).
Gallup's recent polling on the Middle East has shown much stronger support for Israel among conservatives and Republicans than among those of more moderate or liberal political persuasions. This pro-Israel bias is evident in the results of this question. Conservatives favor the United Nations, but only by a slim margin of 48% to 44% over the Israelis. Liberals and moderates, on the other hand, show rather one-sided support for the United Nations. A similar pattern is evident according to political partisanship.
| Support for U.N. or Israel in Refugee Camp
Situation: By Ideology |
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| April 29-May 1, 2002 |
Survey Methods
These results are based on telephone interviews with a randomly selected national sample of 1,002 adults, 18 years and older, conducted April 29-May 1, 2002. For results based on this sample, one can say with 95 percent confidence that the maximum error attributable to sampling and other random effects is plus or minus 3 percentage points. In addition to sampling error, question wording and practical difficulties in conducting surveys can introduce error or bias into the findings of public opinion polls.
Do you approve or disapprove of the way George W. Bush is handling the situation in the Middle East?
|
Approve |
Disapprove |
No opinion |
||
|
% |
% |
% |
||
|
2002 Apr 29-May 1 |
72 |
23 |
5 |
|
|
2002 Apr 5-7 |
67 |
27 |
6 |
|
|
2002 Mar 22-24 ^ |
72 |
23 |
5 |
|
|
^ |
Asked of a half sample. |
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In the Middle East conflict, do you think the United States should take Israel's side, take the Palestinians' side, or not take either side?
|
Israel's |
Palestinians' |
Not take |
No |
||
|
% |
% |
% |
% |
||
|
2002 Apr 29-May 1 |
24 |
2 |
68 |
6 |
|
|
2002 Apr 5-7 |
22 |
2 |
71 |
5 |
|
|
2001 Sep 14-15 |
27 |
1 |
63 |
9 |
|
|
2000 Jul 6-9 ^ |
16 |
1 |
74 |
9 |
|
|
2000 Jan 25-26 |
15 |
1 |
72 |
12 |
|
|
1998 Dec 4-6 |
17 |
2 |
73 |
7 |
|
|
1998 May 8-10 |
15 |
2 |
74 |
9 |
|
|
^ |
Asked of a half sample. |
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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 |
||
|
% |
% |
% |
||
|
2002 Apr 29-May 1 |
43 |
50 |
7 |
|
|
2002 Apr 5-7 |
48 |
47 |
5 |
|
|
2002 Apr 3 ^ |
41 |
48 |
11 |
|
|
^ |
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. |
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Just your best guess, do you think President Bush is taking Israel's side, is taking the Palestinians' side, or is not taking either side?
|
Israel's |
Palestinians' |
Not taking |
No |
|
|
2002 Apr 29-May 1 |
45% |
4 |
43 |
8 |
As you may know, the United Nations authorized sending investigators into the Palestinian refugee camp where much of Israel's recent military action took place. Israel refused the United Nations team entry into the camp until Israel's concerns were addressed. Which side do you tend to agree with more in this situation -- [ROTATED: Israel (or) the United Nations]?
|
|
The United Nations |
BOTH EQUALLY (vol.) |
NEITHER |
No |
|
|
2002 Apr 29-May 1 |
28% |
62 |
1 |
2 |
7 |
|
(vol.) Volunteered response |
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