Public support for Israel has reached a record low in Europe, according to a new survey conducted by the British polling agency YouGov.
Fewer than one in five respondents across six countries expressed a favourable view of Israel, with the majority holding negative perceptions of the country's actions, especially in its onslaught on Gaza.
The survey revealed that net support for Israel has plummeted to its lowest point since YouGov began polling on the issue in 2016. In Germany (-44), France (-48), and Denmark (-54), sentiment was at its most negative ever recorded. Italy (-52) and Spain (-55) showed similarly low figures, consistent with or below levels seen in 2021.
In the UK, net support stood at -46, slightly higher than its lowest recorded level of -49 in late 2023.
Overall, only 13 percent to 21 percent of respondents in any of the six countries reported a positive view of Israel, compared to 63 percent to 70 percent who viewed it negatively.
Approval of Israel's military operations in Gaza was also critically low. Between just six percent and 16 percent of respondents agreed that Israel was justified in sending troops into Gaza and had responded proportionately to Hamas attacks - figures that have declined since similar polling in October 2023. In the UK, only 12 percent expressed such approval.
By contrast, 29 percent to 40 percent of respondents across the countries said Israel was right to respond but had gone too far and caused excessive civilian casualties. Meanwhile, between 12 percent (from Germany) and 24 percent (from Italy) - with 15 percent in the UK - believed Israel should not have entered Gaza at all.
The Eurotrack poll found that support for Israel's continued military campaign in Gaza continues to erode. Just a quarter of respondents in France, Germany, and Denmark said they still considered the offensive justified. In the UK, only 18 percent said the same. In Italy, support dropped to just nine percent.
At the same time, public justification of Hamas's 7 October 2023 attacks remains very low, ranging between five percent and nine percent, though it rose slightly in the UK, from five to six percent - and Italy, from six to eight percent.
The survey also revealed a decline in people who say they "side with" Israel. Between seven and 18 percent of respondents expressed greater sympathy with Israel, marking the lowest or joint-lowest figures recorded in five of the six countries since the start of what many now describe as a campaign of genocide.
By comparison, 18 to 33 percent said they sympathised more with Palestinians, marking an increase in all six countries since 2023. In Germany, sentiment was nearly evenly split, with 17 percent siding with Israel and 18 percent with the Palestinians.
Most respondents across the six countries expressed doubt about the prospect of a lasting peace in the Middle East. The French were the most optimistic, with 29 percent believing peace could be achieved within the next decade. Danes were the least hopeful, at just 15 percent. Since late 2023, belief in the possibility of long-term peace has fallen by between four and ten percentage points across all six countries.
Separately, a poll conducted last week by German public broadcaster ZDF found that 80 percent of Germans believe Israel's military operations in Gaza, which have resulted in mass Palestinian civilian casualties, are unjustified - up from 69 percent in March 2024. Only 12 percent of Germans surveyed said Israel’s military action against Hamas was "appropriate".
The drop in support for Israel was not limited to Europe. A Pew Research Centre survey conducted in April found that views of Israel have grown more negative in the United States over the past three years. As of April, 53 percent of American adults held an unfavourable view of Israel, up from 42 percent in March 2022.
Similarly, a poll by the progressive think tank Data for Progress last month found that 51 percent of US voters oppose Israel's plans to send more troops into Gaza and forcibly relocate Palestinians. The same proportion said Donald Trump should pressure Israel into accepting a ceasefire, while only 31 percent said he should back the military operation.
'Europe's patience is wearing thin'
In a recent report for the Financial Times, European economics commentator Martin Sandbu warned that Europe's patience with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's war on Gaza and settler violence in the occupied West Bank may be running out.
He pointed to several developments over recent weeks, including the EU foreign ministers’ move to review its partnership agreement with Israel, the UK halting trade talks, Norway’s sovereign wealth fund blacklisting an Israeli company for supplying energy to West Bank settlements and threats from leaders in France, the UK, and Canada to impose sanctions. Even Germany, traditionally Israel's staunchest ally in Europe, has begun to voice criticism.
Sandbu acknowledged the West’s double standards in treating Russia and Israel differently but argued it’s time for Europe to independently develop a systematic political framework for applying sanctions, including on Israel, regardless of the US position.
He proposed that banking and financial sanctions may prove ineffective, since the US could easily create alternative payment channels. But one exception, he noted, would be the freezing of Israel’s foreign currency reserves, similar to what was done to Russia, which could significantly damage Israel's economy.
Israel's central bank, he pointed out, invests roughly a quarter of its relatively large foreign reserves in Europe. Freezing these would impair its financial stability tools and could potentially be used over time as reparations for Palestinians.
He also noted that the most impactful sanctions would likely target trade and travel. Israel imports nearly half of its goods from Europe and sends over a third of its exports to the continent, according to Israel’s Central Bureau of Statistics.
Sandbu called on the European Union to elevate its capacity and political will to act against serious violations of international law - no matter who commits them.