Poll: Half of Israeli Voters Believe Netanyahu Isn’t Doing Enough to Strengthen Connection With American Jews
by Benjamin Kerstein
Almost half of Israeli voters believe Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is not doing enough to strengthen the connection between Israeli and American Jews, a new poll has found.
According to Israel’s Channel 2, the poll conducted by the Ruderman Family Foundation, which works to promote the relationship between American Jews and Israel, found that 47 percent of Israeli respondents said Netanyahu must do more to safeguard the connection between the world’s two largest Jewish communities.
The poll also found that 70 percent of respondents think the American Jewish community contributes to Israel’s national security and overall strength.
72 percent said that Netanyahu must condemn recent antisemitic incidents in the United States, such as the attack last week on two Orthodox Jews in New York City and swastikas sprayed on a Jewish community center in Virginia.
Respondents were also asked about recent controversial statements by Israeli politicians on the relationship between Israeli and American Jews.
Asked about MK David Amsalem’s statement that “nothing will happen if American Jewry is insulted by the decisions of the Israeli government,” 60 percent disagreed. The same number rejected MK Bezalel Smotrich’s claim that American Jews need Israel more than Israel needs them.