Al Jazeera Centre for Studies in conjunction with the Middle East Monitor (MEMO) and the European Muslim Research Centre (EMRC) at Exeter University carried out a joint study in January 2011 to gauge British and European perceptions on the ongoing Israel-Palestine conflict. No major study of this kind has been undertaken on a European level since October 2003, when a survey conducted by the European Commission revealed that approximately 60% of Europeans saw Israel as the greatest threat to world peace.
This report presents the findings of a research study conducted by the polling institution ICM Government & Social Research Unit on behalf of Al Jazeera, MEMO and the EMRC. ICM interviewed 7,045 adults across six major European countries: Britain, France, Spain, the Netherlands, Germany and Italy.
Key findings
A few of the most salient points drawn out from our study include the following. Of the adults surveyed:
* 50% believe that being critical of Israel does NOT make a person anti-Semitic;
* 70% believe that the pro-Israel lobby influences the media;
* 67% believe that the pro-Israel lobby influences the political agenda;
* 58% believe that European Law should not be changed to make it easier for those accused of war crimes to visit Europe;
* 65% believe that Israel does not treat all religious groups equally;
* 45% believe that Hamas should be INCLUDED in Israel-Palestine peace talks;
* 41% believe that Israel’s oppression of Palestinians is one of the biggest obstacles to peace in the Middle East;
* 40% believe that Israeli settlements are the biggest obstacles to peace in the Middle East;
* 51% thought of the Gaza Strip when they heard the words “Israel-Palestine conflict”;
* 34% believe that Israel is not a democracy but 65% believe that (democracy or not) there is oppression and domination by one religious group in Israel over another;
* 13% consider Israel to be the bigger threat to world peace compared with only 7% who said the same of the Palestinians;
* 53% were aware that Israel’s economic blockade of the Gaza Strip is illegal;
* 64% stated that the Israeli armed response to the boats carrying supplies to the Gaza Strip in May 2010 was illegal;
* 60% were aware that the Israeli ground incursion into the Gaza Strip during the winter of 2008-2009 was illegal;
* 48% think that Israel exploits the history of the suffering of the Jewish people in Europe to generate public support;
* 39% believe that the Israel-Palestine conflict fuels “Islamophobia” in Europe; and
* 54% believe that Jerusalem should be a neutral international city.
