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Palestinian Public Are Tactical Moderates, But Strategic Militants
(Washington Institute for Near East Policy) David Pollock - According to a poll conducted by the Palestinian Center for Public Opinion on May 16-27, 2017, 63% of West Bankers and 70% of Gazans want more jobs inside Israel. 55% in the West Bank and 57% in Gaza also say "Palestinians should encourage direct personal contacts and dialogue with Israelis." Around half want Israeli companies to employ more Palestinians inside the West Bank and Gaza. Among West Bankers, 55% say Hamas should preserve a cease-fire with Israel. Among Gazans, that figure rises to 80%. We asked: "Regardless of what's right, the reality is that most Israeli settlers will probably stay where they are, and most Palestinian refugees will not return to the 1948 lands." 60% of West Bankers and 46% of Gazans agreed with that assessment. Nevertheless, these relatively pragmatic views on tactics and expectations do not translate into acceptance of Israel's legitimacy. Fewer than 10% of Palestinians say that "Jews have any rights to this land." The survey asked whether "the conflict should not end...until all of historic Palestine is liberated." West Bankers picked continued conflict over permanent peace by 55% to 35%. Gazans opted for permanent peace over continued conflict by 47% to 44%. Two years ago, in May 2015, Gazans, too, favored continued conflict over peace by a two-to-one margin. But since then, many Gazans have probably come to regret the lasting damage of the 2014 war and shifted their views. The majority believe that ultimately, "the Palestinians will control almost all of Palestine," either because "God is on their side" (40%), or because "they will outnumber the Jews" eventually (20%). The writer, a fellow at The Washington Institute, served as senior advisor for the Broader Middle East at the State Department.