Most Israelis do not believe Iran or Hezbollah have been significantly weakened, or that the Operation Roaring Lion so far constitutes a significant success, a recent poll conducted by the Hebrew University of Jerusalem discovered.
“The findings point to despair and pessimism as dominant sentiments, alongside high levels of fatigue and a clear expectation that the conflict is far from over,” the research team said in a statement on Thursday.
In a poll following the announcement of the US-Iran ceasefire, Dr. Nimrod Nir and Dr. Gayil Talshir from Hebrew University surveyed a total of 1,312 Israelis (1,084 Jews, 228 Arabs), ensuring their sample was representative of the Israeli population in terms of gender, age, geographic distribution, and voting patterns in the 25th Knesset elections.
Jewish respondents were also representative in terms of the Jewish population’s religiosity and ethnic origin.
Most respondents had also participated in a survey conducted at the start of the war, allowing researchers to examine any change that may have occured since.
The poll found that 70% of respondents believe that the ceasefire reflects a US concession to Iran, with two-thirds opposing it.
As well, most of respondents (80%) believe that an agreement between the US and Iran would be unlikely or impossible, with a similar percentage believing such an agreement would endanger Israel’s security.
Growing distrust in leadership information
Additionally, there is “growing distrust in the information the public receives from leadership and increasing concern about national security," the statement said.
Over 70% believe that the public is not receiving a full and reliable picture of the war, with fewer than a quarter believing that Iran would need years to recover and less than one-fifth believing the same about Hezbollah.
Less then half (44%) do not believe that Iran is on the verge of collapse.
Public sentiment has also reversed from optimism to pessimism, according to the researchers.
Over 60% of respondents said the current reality was worse than they had expected, while fewer than 40% said they would have supported the operation had they known what would have happened.
Significant fatigue was reported by 58% of respondents, over half of whom reported major disruption to daily life.