Nearly half of Jewish Israelis support expulsion of Palestinians: Poll

Almost half of Jewish Israelis support the transfer or expulsion of Palestinians, while 61 percent believe that God gave the land to the Jewish people, according to the results of a survey published on Tuesday by a US-based think tank. 

The survey by the Pew Research Center was conducted from October 2014 until May 2015 and polled 5,601 people, including 3,879 Jewish residents of Israel and settlers and Palestinians in occupied East Jerusalem.

Forty-eight percent of Jewish Israelis said they agreed with the statement that “Arabs should be expelled or transferred from Israel”. Twenty-nine percent said they “don’t really agree” and 17 percent said they “don’t agree at all”.

The proportion of those who supported the statement was higher among religious Jews, those who held right-wing beliefs and those with lower levels of educational achievement.

Furthermore, Jews from Mizrahi roots (from the Middle East and North Africa) supported the transfer of Palestinians more than Ashkenazi (European) Jews, at 56 percent compared to 40 percent.

Alan Cooperman, the director of religion research at Pew, told Haaretz that the wording of the statement was deliberately formed to be non-specific and direct, without taking into account details of whether the expulsion or transfer came with compensation, or which Palestinians the survey was talking about.

The results of the survey showed that the Jewish community was evenly split between supporters and opponents of expulsion, Cooperman said.

However, Professor Sammy Smooha, a sociologist at the University of Haifa, branded the statement’s wording as ambiguous.

"Although it's clear that support for expulsion and transfer should be condemned, the wording of the question is misleading and vague," he told Haaretz.

“The way the question is presented, the statement 'to expel Arabs from Israel' is noncommittal and is even easy to agree with."

Smooha pointed out how the survey did not make a distinction between Palestinian citizens of Israel and Palestinians living in the West Bank, calling the statement “unrealistic and unfeasible”.

The survey also revealed that just over six out of every 10 Jewish Israelis believed that God had given them the land.

Regarding support for a two-state solution, the poll showed a slight decrease among Jewish Israelis to 43 percent from 46 percent in 2013.