Israelis, Palestinians, Americans See War in Iran Differently

Israelis, Palestinians and Americans hold sharply different views on the U.S. and Israeli decision to attack Iran, according to surveys conducted after a ceasefire ended more than five weeks of fighting.

Three-quarters of Israelis say the U.S. made the right decision in attacking Iran, while eight-in-ten Palestinians in the West Bank and East Jerusalem say it was the wrong decision, the Pew Research Center reported ^[1]. A majority of Americans also said going to war was wrong ^[1]. The war began on February 28, 2026, when U.S. and Israeli airstrikes killed Iran's supreme leader, and a ceasefire went into effect on April 7 ^[1].

Majorities in the U.S. and Israel agree that Iran is not doing enough to protect civilians, according to a separate Pew analysis ^[2]. About three-quarters of Israelis say their own country is doing enough to protect civilians ^[2]. A plurality of Palestinians in the West Bank and East Jerusalem say Iran is doing enough to avoid civilian casualties ^[2].

Israeli Jews were much more likely than Israeli Arabs to say Israel made the right decision, 87% to 19% ^[1]. Among Israeli Jews, 96% of those who support Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's governing coalition backed the decision, compared with 77% of Jews who do not support the coalition ^[1].

In the United States, views varied drastically by party. Around 70% of Republicans and Republican-leaning independents said the U.S. made the right decision, while 90% of Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents said it was wrong ^[1]. Americans' views on the decision held steady between late March and late April, even as the share of U.S. adults who said the military action was not going well increased ^[1].

On the war's long-term effects, Israelis broadly anticipated a safer world and a safer Israel, while Palestinians mostly expected the war to make things worse ^[1]. Americans had mixed assessments: 33% said the military action would make the world less safe, and 27% said it would make the world safer ^[1]. Americans were about evenly split on whether the war would make Iran's development of a nuclear weapon more likely, less likely, or about as likely as before ^[1].

Pew surveyed 1,001 Israelis from April 5 to May 6, 2026, and 1,038 Palestinians in the West Bank and East Jerusalem from March 30 to April 28 ^[1]. Researchers were unable to survey Palestinians in Gaza ^[1]. In the U.S., two surveys were conducted in late March before the ceasefire and another from April 20 to 26 ^[1].