(Courtesy of IDI) The monthly Peace Index of the Israel Democracy Institute and Tel Aviv University published recently found that Israelis think that the forces that unite Israeli Jews and American Jews are stronger than the forces that separate them, that a significant portion of the public believes that the Prime Minister failed to deal with the Iranian threat and that a significant majority of the public think that the Recommendations Law should not be approved.
The main results are as follows:
Israel and the American Jewish Community
Close to half of the Jewish public (47.5 percent) thinks that the forces that unite Israeli Jews and American Jews are stronger than the forces that separate them. Only 12.5 percent of the Jewish public think that the dividing forces are stronger. Forty-nine percent of the Jews in Israel believe that the connection between the American Jewish community and Israel is more important to Israel, while 12 percent think it is more important to the American Jewish community, and 35 percent think that it is equally important to both. However, most of the Jewish interviewees (55 percent) believe that despite the good relationship, the American Jewish community should not be taken into account with regards to internal Israeli questions such as the religious status of the Reform and Conservative movements. A more specific indication of the complexity of the relations between the two communities can be found in the public’s reactions to Deputy Foreign Minister Hotovely’s recent statements that most American Jews do not understand Israel because they “never send their children to fight for their country.” Fifty-one percent of the Jewish interviewees agreed with her words while 45 percent disagreed. A large majority of the Jewish respondents (71 percent) also believe that Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Hotovely should not be dismissed from office because of her recent remarks.
The Iranian Threat
Sixty-nine percent agree with the Prime Minister’s statement that despite the nuclear agreement, Iran is close to developing nuclear capabilities that will threaten Israel’s existence. Eighty-six percent of the Jewish interviewees agreed that such a presence endangers Israel’s security, while the Arab interviewees were divided on this question. Finally, it was found that 47 percent of the Jewish interviewees and 73.4 percent of the Arab interviewees believe that Netanyahu has so far failed in his policy toward Iran, compared with 45 percent of the Jewish interviewees and 14.6 percent of the Arab interviewees who believe the opposite. However, among right-wing voters, only a third thinks that Netanyahu has failed.
