April 2007 Poll: 63% of Palestinians Support...

The phone survey, conducted by Near East Consulting, was sampled between April 25^th-27^th, among a representative sample of 800 Palestinians from Gaza and the West Bank. There is a +-3.45% standard deviation.

The survey found that 63% percent of Palestinians support signing a peace agreement with Israel as opposed to 37% who object. 75% of Palestinians believe there is no Israeli partner for peace, as opposed to 25% of Palestinians who believe that there is an Israeli partner for peace. Conversely, 75% of survey respondents responded that there is a Palestinian partner for peace with Israel, as opposed 25% who ruled out the existence of a Palestinian partner for peace.

In the same context, 74% of Palestinians polled said they believed the meetings held between Palestinian and Israeli political leaders were ineffective and unhelpful in pushing the peace process forward. 26% responded that these meetings contributed to the realization of peace in the region.

59% of survey respondents called on Hamas to take all necessary measures and means to reach a peace agreement with Israel. 57% called on the Hamas movement to change its platform, which calls for the destruction of Israel.

83% of Palestinians said the ceasefire with Israel should be expanded to include other areas, as opposed to 17% who opposed this.

President Abbas maintained the Palestinian confidence he was shown to have in last month's Near East Consulting survey, which indicated Palestinians had more confidence in him than in Prime Minister Haniyeh. 55% of respondents said they trust Abbas more, as opposed to 45% who said they trust Haniyeh more.

Fatah came in first on the issue of support for parties with 31% of respondents, while 22% showed support for Hamas, 2% supported the Popular Front, and 4% supported other factions. 41% of survey respondents said they do not support any party or political group in the Palestinian arena.

Respondents were asked which parties their relatives, neighbors and friends support. Replies indicate that 40% support Fatah, 25% support Hamas and 5% support other factions. 30% appear to not support any party.

Worries and Frustration among Palestinians

The survey reveals that 77% of Palestinians are frustrated as a result of the current situation, compared to 15% who are not frustrated and 8% who are in-between.

91% of the responders were worried about the current situation, as opposed to 9% who stated they were not worried.