Majority of British public opposes Israel's Gaza war, supports Netanyahu arrest

A new poll has revealed that a majority of Britons oppose Israel's war on Gaza and want their government to enforce the International Criminal Court's (ICC) arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

The survey, conducted by YouGov on behalf of Action For Humanity and the International Centre for Justice for Palestinians, found that 55 percent of people said they oppose the Israeli military onslaught, which has killed at least 55,000 Palestinians since October 2023. Only 15 percent of the 2,010 adults surveyed said that they support Israel's assault on Gaza.

Of those who said they oppose the war, a majority of 82 percent said they believe Israel to be committing genocide against the Palestinians - a view shared by UN experts and leading international rights groups, including Amnesty International. This translates to 45 percent of UK adults viewing Israel's actions as genocidal.

Israel is currently accused of committing genocide at the World Court, and Prime Minister Netanyahu and former defence minister Yoav Gallant are accused of war crimes by the International Criminal Court (ICC), including the use of starvation as a weapon of war.

The poll found that 65 percent, nearly two-thirds, of respondents support Britain enforcing the ICC warrant if the Israeli leader visits the UK. The government of Prime Minister Keir Starmer dropped a legal challenge to the warrants initiated by its Conservative predecessor, and has suggested it would comply with the warrant.

"Despite the misinformation to whitewash war crimes being committed in Gaza, the British public are not being fooled. It is clear that a majority of the public here are disgusted with Israel's conduct, and a growing number agree that this is clearly a genocide," said Othman Moqbel, CEO of Action For Humanity.

"The UK's failure to take a real stand against this is not just a moral abomination, but it is politically negligent too. Polling shows that most Labour voters demand meaningful action: recognition of Palestine, enforcement of international law, and a humanitarian response that matches the unprecedented suffering that we have witnessed for 20 months."

'Out of touch'

The poll also revealed that opposition to Israel's war on Gaza is stronger among voters who backed Labour in the 2024 General Election, with 68 percent opposing Israel's actions and 87 percent stating that it is committing genocide.

Regarding the ICC arrest warrant for Netanyahu, 78 percent of Labour voters believe that the UK should enforce it, should the Israeli leader visit the UK. Only five percent oppose enforcement of the warrant.

Jonathan Purcell, Senior Public Affairs Officer for the International Centre of Justice for Palestinians, said the poll's results show the gulf between the public's views and the actions of their government.

"This poll shows what we already know: the UK Government is totally out of touch with the British public they are supposed to represent, and the Labour Party are even more out of touch with their own voters," Purcell said.

"UK policymaking should be based on complying with international law obligations, regardless, but this poll just goes to show the level of popular support for such policies too. There is absolutely no appetite to drag our national reputation through the mud by continuing to stand with a rogue, pariah state." 

The Labour government has faced mounting criticism over its handling of the Gaza war, with rights groups and NGOs accusing the UK of complicity in crimes against humanity.

In the first weeks of the Israeli onslaught, Starmer came under fire after saying that Israel "had the right" to deprive Gaza of water and electricity, and later rights groups have said that Britain's partial ban on arms sales to Israel does not go far enough.

The YouGov poll also found that strong support for Palestinian statehood, with 30 percent supporting immediate recognition, and 19 percent saying it should be recognised "at some point when the time is right".

Starmer's Labour manifesto pledged to recognise a Palestinian state as "a contribution to a renewed peace process which results in a two-state solution", however marked a shift from his predecessor's promise of immediate recognition.