A majority of Americans now oppose Israel's war on Gaza

A majority of Americans now oppose Israel's war on Gaza, for the first time since the assault on the enclave began in October.

A Gallup poll released on Wednesday found that 55 percent of Americans now oppose the war, a ten percent increase since the last survey was conducted by the pollsters in November.

Only one-third of Americans now support Israel's brutal operation in Gaza, which has killed tens of thousands of Palestinian civilians, a sharp decrease since the last poll was conducted in November when around half of respondents backed the military campaign.

The growing opposition in the US to Israel's war on Gaza follows the confirmed Palestinian death toll tripling from 10,000 on 5 November to 32,490 on Wednesday with many more feared dead.

Gaza's limited aid access, due to an Israeli blockade, has resulted in biblical-scale food shortages with distressing images emerging of children and adults dying of malnutrition in the north of the enclave.

Added to this is footage of the utter devastation unleashed in Gaza being beamed into American homes, with nearly three-quarters of respondents saying they are following the "Hamas-Israel" situation closely, and one-third saying "very closely".

The change in American public attitudes toward the humanitarian crisis in Gaza comes as the US political establishment takes an increasingly critical view of Israel's conduct in the Gaza war.

Leading US officials have warned Israel against an unplanned assault on the border city of Rafah, where around half of Gaza's population is huddled, with even threats to withdraw arms supplies if the offensive goes ahead.

This week, Washington abstained from a UNSC vote demanding an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, leading to a diplomatic crisis with Israel.

Other polls indicate a change in views among the traditionally pro-Israeli American public, with large-scale protests and civil action among pro-Palestine activists and workers since October.

An AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll found that half of US adults believe Israel's war on Gaza had "gone too far".

Opinions are divided along political partisan lines with Democrats far more likely to oppose Israeli military action than Republicans, but even then both surveys indicate a significant swing against Israel among both supporters of parties.

In other countries with pro-Israeli governments, the public has also turned decisively against the Gaza war, with a majority of British, as early as November, saying Israel should stop its offensive and pursue a ceasefire.