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67% of Arabs believe Oct. 7 was ‘legitimate resistance,’ survey finds
A new opinion poll, carried out by the Arab Center for Research and Policy Studies, was published on January 10. The poll, which collected data from 8000 Arab respondents from 16 countries, aimed to determine how Arab populations perceived the Israel-Hamas war.
Amongst one of the many findings of the survey, it was noted that 67% of respondents perceived Hamas’s October 7th attack, categorized by the survey as “the military operation carried out by Hamas,” as “a legitimate resistance operation.” The survey results clarified that 19% answered that the attack was legitimate but “flawed,” 3% said it was legitimate but “involved heinous or criminal acts” and only 5% called the attack “illegitimate.”
Why did Hamas attack, according to respondents?
While many have seen Hamas’s attack on Israel as a proxy war for Iran, only 2% of respondents agreed, while 35% of Arab respondents stated their belief that the number 1 reason behind the attack was “The ongoing Israeli occupation of Palestinian land.”
The second most given reason was “Defending al-Aqsa Mosque against attacks,” which 24% of respondents affirmed as their believed reason.
The al-Aqsa Mosque has been a source of tension as it is located above the Temple Mount, a holy site for both Jews and Christians. While non-Muslims now have permission to attend their holy site via the Moors Gate, they are forbidden from praying there which has created increased tension. Jewish activists have repeatedly tried to pray at the site, which has been met with escalating conflict.
While 24% argued that defending the mosque was the most important reason behind the attack, a Hamas rocket would have landed on the holy site in December, if Israel’s Iron Dome system hadn’t prevented the attack.
Only 8% of the respondents felt the “[t]he ongoing blockade of Gaza” was the main reason for the attack, with a further 12% claiming it to be the second most important reason.
Israel withdrew citizens from Gaza in 2005, creating a separate territory that was taken over by Hamas in 2006. Gaza borders both Israel and Egypt, with crossings policed heavily by both countries. Palestinians, before October 7, had been permitted to enter Israel with proper documentation for work, medical treatments or for other reasons.
Arab solidarity with Palestinians and Hamas
In mass agreement, 92% of respondents expressed they had a feeling of solidarity with Gaza’s Palestinian population. In addition, 69% said they supported both the Palestinians and Hamas. Only 1% said they had no feelings of solidarity with the Palestinians and 23% said they had feelings of solidarity for Palestinians but opposed Hamas.
Opinions on international parties
When asked about the responses of regional and international powers to the war, 94% said they considered the United States position negatively, with 82% clarifying they thought it was bad. The same trend continued for other Western countries with 79%, 78%, and 75% of respondents viewed the positions of France, the UK, and Germany negatively.
In a different survey response, 81% said that they did not believe the US was serious about establishing a Palestinian state and 77% of respondents named the US and Israel as the biggest threat to the security and stability of the region.
US Secretary of State Andrew Blinken continued to advocate for a Palestinian state only yesterday, claiming that it was the best way to marginalize Iran.
Additionally, while one May survey found that over half of Palestinians wanted a two-state solution, a November survey by the Arab World for Research and Development found that over 70% of Palestinians support only a singular Palestinian state without a Jewish one.
Arab opinion on Iran, Turkey, Russia, and China was more split, with 48%, 47%, 41%, 40% perceiving the countries positively.
Normalizing ties with Israel
When asked what steps Arab governments should take in response to the war, 36% of respondents stated that Arab governments should suspend all relations or normalization processes with Israel, and a further 14% said aid should be sent to Gaza without Israeli approval.
A further 29% of respondents suggested that Arab countries should either “provide military aid to Gaza” or “announce military mobilization” against Israel.
Israel’s political echelon, led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, has ordered the IDF to prepare for an “immediate” return to fighting in Gaza, KAN News reported on Friday evening.
The Jerusalem Post reported earlier this week that Israeli officials estimated that if no agreement was reached between Israel and Hamas, Israel would return to fighting in Gaza in about a week and a half.
“Hamas is currently rejecting [US Middle East envoy Steve] Witkoff’s proposal, so it is very difficult to make progress,” one official said.
According to the Prime Minister’s Office, Witkoff’s plan involves the release of half of the living hostages and the return of half of the bodies on the first day of the continued deal. The rest of the hostages and bodies would be returned on the 42nd day, which would be the final day of the ceasefire.However, some claim that the terrorist organization has not rejected the proposal. According to a source familiar with the negotiations, “Hamas has neither accepted nor rejected the Witkoff proposal.”
Eyal Zamir to Gaza border community heads: We’re preparing to fight
On his first day as the new IDF chief of staff on Thursday, Lt.-Gen. Eyal Zamir told heads of local councils from the Gaza border communities that “we are preparing to return to fighting” in Gaza.
“We must defeat Hamas,” Zamir said. “We are also preparing to resume fighting. The hostages are our top priority.”
Amichai Stein contributed to this report.
Negotiations over the continued release of hostages held in Gaza have stalled, and “right now there is nothing happening,” sources familiar with details of the talks admitted in conversation with The Jerusalem Post on Monday.
“Right now, there’s nothing happening,” an Israeli official told the Post, adding that “Hamas is currently rejecting the Witkoff proposal, so it is very difficult to make progress.”
According to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office, the Witkoff plan involves the release of half of the living hostages and the return of half of the bodies on the first day of the deal. The second half of the hostages and bodies would be returned on the 42nd day, which would be the final day of the ceasefire.
On the other hand, some claim that Hamas has not rejected the proposal. “Hamas has neither accepted nor rejected the Witkoff proposal,” said a source with knowledge of the negotiations with the Post.“Hamas has said it is willing to negotiate and has not rejected the plan. Since Israel currently states that this is the proposal on the table, from Israel’s perspective, Hamas has rejected it.”
Trump envoy Steve Witkoff not expected to visit Israel soon, source says
An Israeli source told the Post that there is no expectation for Trump’s envoy, Steve Witkoff, to visit the region at the moment, adding, “He will only come to finalize a deal. And since there is no real progress right now, it is unclear when or if he will arrive.”
Without an agreement on the release of additional hostages in the coming days, Israeli sources say Israel is preparing to escalate its actions against Hamas. After the decision on Sunday to stop humanitarian aid, Israel is preparing to cut off water and electricity to the Gaza Strip, as well as resume fighting – some say this might happen, without a deal, as early as next week.
Israeli officials suggest that even without accepting the Witkoff initiative, Hamas might agree to release additional hostages in the near future in exchange for the release of terrorists from prison and the entry of caravans and humanitarian aid, but they add that this also depends on other issues.
“The Israeli government needs to decide what will be negotiated with Hamas and what they will receive in exchange for the release of hostages in the coming weeks,” said an Israeli source. “Hamas’s agreement to release more hostages depends on the answers to these questions.”
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said on Monday that Israel responded to the mediators’ request to allow a few more days of negotiations. Katz added,d “If Hamas does not release the hostages soon, the gates of Gaza will be locked and the gates of hell will be opened – we will return to fighting, and they will face the IDF with forces and methods they have never encountered before.”
Israeli officials suggest that even without accepting the Witkoff initiative, Hamas might agree to release additional hostages in the near future in exchange for the release of terrorists from prison and the entry of caravans and humanitarian aid, but they add that this also depends on other issues. “The Israeli government needs to decide what will be negotiated with Hamas and what they will receive in exchange for the release of hostages in the coming weeks,” said an Israeli source. “Hamas’s agreement to release more hostages depends on the answers to these questions.”
No progress has been made in the ceasefire talks in Cairo, and Israel is reaching a dead end, a source familiar with the details of the negotiations told The Jerusalem Post Saturday.
There were lots of technical discussions but no results, the source added.
Israel and mediating countries believe that only the Trump administration can perhaps break the talks out of the impasse.
“When [US Middle East envoy Steve] Witkoff arrives, things may happen. Everyone is waiting for him,” the source said.Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will convene a meeting on the hostage deal in the next several hours with senior officials and the negotiation team, an Israeli official told the Post.
Hamas refusing Israeli proposal to extend phase one of deal
Hamas is refusing the idea of extending the first phase of the deal, Israeli officials said.
The Israeli and Qatari delegations arrived in Cairo on Thursday. The delegation is led by Coordinator for the Hostages and the Missing Persons, Brig.-Gen. (Res.) Gal Hirsch, as well as “M,” an anonymous officer from the Shin Bet. M is the former deputy of Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar, who is reportedly no longer part of the hostage deal negotiating team.
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