Israel Matzav

58% of Israeli Jews: Israel should not show flexibility to renew talks

Most Israeli Jews have had it with Abu Bluff and the 'Palestinians.' According to the June 'peace index' from Tel Aviv University and the Israel Democracy Institute, by a majority of 58.0% - 37.3%, most Israeli Jews believe that Israel should not show flexibility to renew talks with the 'Palestinians.'

1. What is your position on holding peace negotiations between Israel and
the Palestinian Authority?
1. Strongly in favor 34.2
2. Somewhat in favor 29.3
3. Somewhat opposed 11.6
4. Strongly opposed 20.1
5. Don’t know / Refuse to answer 4.8

2. Do you believe or not believe that negotiations between Israel and the
Palestinian Authority will lead to peace between Israel and the Palestinians
in the coming years?
1. Strongly believe 9.7
2. Somewhat believe 18.9
3. Somewhat don’t believe 20.9
4. Don’t believe at all 47.8
5. Don’t know / Refuse to answer 2.7

3. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, as an emissary of President Obama,
is trying to restart the Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations. In your
opinion, what are the chances that he will succeed in restarting the talks?
1. Very high 4.0
2. Moderately high 18.3
3. Moderately low 40.1
4. Very low 31.2
5. Don’t know / Refuse to answer 6.3

4. In your opinion, in order to facilitate the resumption of negotiations
with the Palestinians, should Israel or should Israel not show greater
flexibility?
1. I am sure Israel should 13.3
2. I think Israel should 24.0
3. I think Israel should not 16.7
4. I am sure Israel should not 41.3
5. Don’t know / Refuse to answer 4.7

5. In your opinion, does the Palestinian Authority really want or not
really want to resume the peace negotiations?
1. I am sure it wants to 6.8
2. I think it wants to 19.6
3. I think it does not want to 20.8
4. I am sure it does not want to 46.2
5. Don’t know / Refuse to answer 6.5

6. Does the Israeli government really want or not really want to resume
the peace negotiations?
1. I am sure it wants to 16.7
2. I think it wants to 40.5
3. I think it does not want to 21.3
4. I am sure it does not want to 15.2
5. Don’t know / Refuse to answer 6.3

...

Kerry’s chances of success. The overwhelming majority of the Jewish public
in Israel does not tend to believe that U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry’s
efforts to renew the Israeli-Palestinian negotiations will bear fruit.

Seventy-one percent see the chances of success as very or moderately low.
The Arab public has exactly the same view, with 72% rating the chances that
Kerry's mission will yield the desired results as moderately or very low.

The degree of flexibility required of Israel. Whether because they see the
chances of Kerry's mission as low or because they have no interest in the
renewal of negotiations, the majority of the Jewish public (58%) does not
think Israel should show greater flexibility in order to facilitate the
resumption of the peace talks. The Arab public holds the opposite opinion,
with an unequivocal majority of 90.5% strongly or moderately agreeing that
Israel should be more flexible in order to facilitate a return to the
negotiating table.

Who wants a renewal of talks? The prevailing view in the Jewish public (67%)
is that the Palestinian Authority does not really want to resume peace
talks, while a majority (57%) thinks that the Israeli government wants to
resume the talks. Here too the Arab public’s outlook is fundamentally
different: 86% of Arab respondents said the Palestinian Authority is
genuinely interested in returning to the negotiating table; as for the
Israeli government, 51% of Arab respondents believe the Israeli government
is genuinely interested in restarting negotiations while 41% think that it
is not.

A cross-check of the Jewish public’s perception of the sincerity of the
Palestinian Authority’s desire to resume peace talks and the question of
whether Israel should show greater flexibility revealed that the
respondents' assessment of the Palestinians’ intentions has a great
influence on their positions on the need for greater flexibility.

Sixty-eight percent of Jews who think the Palestinians sincerely want to
return to the talks think Israel should show greater flexibility; among
those who view the Palestinian intentions as insincere, only 24% think
Israel should show greater flexibility.

By the way, an even larger majority of Israeli Jews is unhappy with the government's performance.

Read the whole thing.

Labels: Abu Mazen, Binyamin Netanyahu, Middle East peace process, negotiations without preconditions, Palestinian Authority, two-state solution

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 12:28 AM