JERUSALEM — Israelis have little hope that a peace proposal expected to be unveiled soon by the Trump administration will succeed, according to a public opinion poll released Monday.
The survey by the Israel Democracy Institute and Tel Aviv University indicates that nearly three-quarters of respondents think the plan has a very low or moderately low chance of success. The survey did not ask respondents why they think so.
The skepticism comes despite warm feelings for President Donald Trump by both Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the Israeli public. The poll found that 77 percent of respondents think Israel’s interests are important to Trump, whereas more than 60 percent think the Palestinians’ interests are not important to Trump.
Shortly after taking office, Trump dispatched his Mideast team to the region in a bid to forge what he has called the “ultimate” deal between Israel and the Palestinians. The administration has said it will present its vision for peace soon.
Any peace plan would face major obstacles, including the increasingly dire humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip, internal Palestinian divisions, and recent cross-border violence between Gaza’s Hamas rulers and Israel. (AP)