By: Fern Sidman

A new survey released Sunday by the Jewish People Policy Institute (JPPI) lays bare a widening gulf between Israeli and American Jews over Israel’s war in Gaza, the fate of Hamas, and the humanitarian narratives dominating international headlines. According to a report that appeared on World Israel News (WIN), the findings speak volumes not only about divergent perspectives on strategy and morality but also the pressures Jewish communities on both sides of the Atlantic face in interpreting October 7th and its aftermath.

At the core of the debate is a wrenching moral and strategic dilemma: should Israel prioritize dismantling Hamas at all costs, or strike a deal to secure the return of the 48 hostages still held in Gaza, even if it means leaving Hamas intact? For Israelis, the poll shows, the answer is clear. For American Jews, the story is far more divided—and fraught.

The JPPI’s Voice of the Jewish People Index, cited in the World Israel News report, found that nearly half of Israeli Jews (46%) want the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) to continue fighting in Gaza until Hamas is completely dismantled. Only 43% said they would prioritize a hostage deal that might leave Hamas in power. Ten percent expressed no opinion.

This preference reflects the trauma of October 7th, when Hamas terrorists murdered more than 1,200 Israelis and abducted 251 others, sparking the bloodiest day in Jewish history since the Holocaust. The World Israel News report observed that for many Israelis the war is not merely about hostages or ceasefire deals—it is about survival. Any arrangement that allows Hamas to regroup or rearm is seen as a recipe for further massacres.

By contrast, American Jews were split almost evenly: 42% favored pressing ahead with the war until Hamas is defeated, while 43% preferred a hostage deal, regardless of Hamas’s future role in Gaza.

Perhaps the most striking revelation in the JPPI survey, reported by World Israel News, is the rising number of American Jews who say Israel’s military response to October 7th has been “too aggressive.” In January 2024, that figure stood at 31%. Today it has surged to 47%.

Among self-identified “very liberal” American Jews, the numbers are even more lopsided: 69% described Israel’s response as “far too aggressive,” with another 16% calling it “somewhat too aggressive.” Together, an overwhelming 85% of very liberal respondents judged Israel’s conduct of the war as excessive.

This growing criticism, according to the report on World Israel News, reflects both generational shifts in American Jewish identity and the broader influence of progressive politics in the United States. Younger, left-leaning Jews are increasingly influenced by the rhetoric of social justice movements that cast Israel as an oppressor and Palestinians as the oppressed. The result is a widening dissonance between diaspora Jews and their Israeli counterparts, who live under the shadow of Hamas rockets and infiltrations.

In a notable contrast to their criticism of Israel’s military tactics, American Jews expressed skepticism about one of the central claims pushed by Hamas and echoed by much of the international press: that Gaza’s population faces starvation.

As the World Israel News report highlighted, fully 70% of American Jewish respondents said the reports of starvation in Gaza are exaggerated. Nearly half (44%) said the claims are “greatly exaggerated.”

This skepticism is consistent with Israel’s position, often cited by officials and military spokespeople, that Hamas has systematically manipulated humanitarian narratives to delegitimize Israel, exaggerating shortages while hoarding supplies for its fighters and tunnels. The poll suggests that, despite rising criticism of Israel’s tactics, a majority of American Jews remain wary of Hamas propaganda.

Another unifying theme across the Jewish spectrum was deep distrust of the United Nations. According to the JPPI poll, 79% of respondents expressed a negative opinion of the U.N., with 61% describing their view as “very negative.” Only 18% said they had a “somewhat negative” view.

As the World Israel News report noted, Israel has long regarded the U.N. as institutionally biased, citing decades of resolutions condemning Israel while ignoring atrocities committed by regimes like Iran, Syria, or North Korea. That American Jews overwhelmingly share this skepticism suggests that the U.N.’s credibility problem is not limited to Israel’s government but extends to the wider Jewish world.

The JPPI survey also measured attitudes toward the recent wave of international recognition of a Palestinian state and the imposition of sanctions on Israel by foreign governments. Here, American Jews voiced strong concern.

Forty percent said that recognizing Palestinian statehood in the wake of the October 7th massacre was not only anti-Israel but also antisemitic. Nearly half (48%) said the same of countries imposing sanctions on Israel.

As the World Israel News report observed, these findings resonate with Israel’s argument that rewarding Palestinian violence with diplomatic recognition sends a dangerous message: that terrorism pays. To many Jews, both in Israel and abroad, unilateral recognition and sanctions signal not legitimate criticism of Israel but hostility toward Jewish sovereignty itself.

The poll also probed American Jewish perceptions of Charlie Kirk, the conservative pro-Israel influencer assassinated at a Utah event last month. The results revealed deep fractures along denominational and ideological lines.

Two in five respondents overall described Kirk as a friend of American Jews. Twenty-nine percent considered him an adversary, 18% saw him as neutral, and 16% were unsure.

Among Orthodox Jews, however, support for Kirk was overwhelming: 79% of ultra-Orthodox respondents and 62% of Modern Orthodox respondents called him a friend. By contrast, 41% of Reform Jews viewed him as an adversary.

As the World Israel News report noted, these divisions reflect broader political dynamics in American Jewry, with Orthodox communities more aligned with conservative pro-Israel voices and Reform communities more inclined toward progressive critiques.

Taken together, the JPPI findings reveal a tale of two communities. In Israel, where the stakes are existential and the enemy is at the gates, the priority is clear: dismantle Hamas, even if hostages must remain in captivity longer. The trauma of October 7th, World Israel News reported, has hardened public opinion around the principle that survival requires decisive victory.

In America, Jewish opinion is fractured by ideological polarization. While many remain supportive of Israel’s security imperatives and skeptical of Hamas propaganda, a growing liberal bloc increasingly frames Israel’s actions as excessive, aligning more with progressive movements that prioritize Palestinian suffering over Israeli security.

The divide carries profound implications for U.S.-Israel relations. American Jewish communities have historically played a central role in sustaining bipartisan support for Israel in Washington. If large segments of American Jews now adopt positions that mirror those of Israel’s harshest critics, the political foundation of U.S.-Israel ties could weaken over time.

As the World Israel News report warned, the erosion of pro-Israel sentiment among Democrats could embolden hostile initiatives like the “Block the Bombs Act,” which seeks to restrict U.S. arms sales to Israel. The JPPI survey demonstrates that such measures may find growing support among Democratic-leaning Jewish voters, a development that would have been unthinkable in previous generations.

“October 7: Bearing Witness to the Massacre”—the IDF’s harrowing documentary shown worldwide—has underscored the stakes of this war for Israelis: it is a struggle for survival, identity, and deterrence. For many American Jews, insulated from the immediate threat, the calculus looks different. But as the JPPI survey reminds us, the choices made in Israel reverberate globally.

As the World Israel News report emphasized in its coverage of the poll, the divergence between Israeli determination and American ambivalence is more than an intellectual difference; it is a test of solidarity. Can world Jewry remain united in the face of terror, or will ideological divides weaken the collective resolve?

The answer may well determine not only the future of Gaza and Israel’s security but also the cohesion of the Jewish people in an age of mounting antisemitism and unprecedented political polarization.