Fewer Israelis and Palestinian Authority Arabs support the two-state solution today than in the past, a poll by the Israeli Democracy Institute shows.
Advertisement
The Israeli Committee against House Demolitions (ICAHD) explains in a special report that “in nearly all cases Palestinians have no choice but to build “illegally” as permits are nearly impossible to obtain”.
The settlements are built on land Palestinians want for a future state – a state which the new poll shows both Israelis and Palestinians still hope will be created. “We stress the need for immediate action to prevent the implementation of this new settlement plan”, it said in a statement.
Support for the two-state solution has been on a general downward trend over the last 10 years, said Tamar Hermann, the IDI researcher who measured Israeli attitudes.
In a statement released on Monday, the agency said it was “gravely concerned” about the killing of Muhammad Abu Hashhash – who was reportedly unarmed when he was shot in the chest by a sniper stationed some 100 meters away – and the numerous other injuries from Israeli live ammunition that lead to the hospitalization of dozens of Palestinian civilians.
Recommended: How much do you know about Israel? Only 20 percent of all Israelis and 34 percent of Palestinians voiced support for a single shared state.
After two decades of failed peace efforts, and almost a year of low-level violence, mistrust is strong. In contrast, 54% of Palestinians say they do not fear Israeli Jews.
Hermann said she was surprised by the higher fear level on the Israeli side, and cited a number of factors.
A new rule that makes it more hard for Palestinians to sue their Israeli employers for abusive and unlawful behaviour has been denounced as unfair.
She also said the recent wave of violence had jolted Israeli society, which had been more insulated from the conflict than Palestinians living under Israeli occupation.
However, when the pollsters presented Israelis and Palestinians with a hypothetical peace agreement based on previous negotiations, only 39% of Palestinians and 46% of Israelis supported it.
Advertisement
All other multilateral forums-American-led (Israelis 26%, Palestinians 8%), EU-led (Israelis 7%, Palestinians 20%), or UN-led (Israelis 12%, Palestinians 22%)-are acceptable to one side while unacceptable to the other. The poll surveyed some 1,200 people on each side and had a margin of error of 3 percentage points.
