Over half of European Jews feel 'ashamed' of Israel’s actions, survey shows

A new survey published this week has revealed over half of European Jews sometimes feel "ashamed" of the Israeli government's actions.

The poll recorded a sharp increase in respondents revealing they were "sometimes ashamed of the actions of the Israeli government", with 54 percent feeling this way, compared to 39 percent in 2021.

The American Joint Distribution Committee (AJDC) surveyed 879 responders from 32 countries. Over half were lay leaders, and over a quarter were community professionals, including rabbis and activists.

Israel's war on Gaza has killed almost 40,000 Palestinian civilians, with the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu refusing to agree to a ceasefire deal until the state reaches its "goal" of destroying Hamas.

Netanyahu is set to speak before the US congress this week, with ceasefire negotiations being prolonged by him.

However, 70 percent did say they would support Israel "regardless" of how its government behaves, which is up from 66 percent.

At the same time, another survey obtained by Haaretz revealed 70 percent of Israelis say their prime minister is "very" or "somewhat" responsible for failing to reach a deal to free captives held by Hamas in Gaza.

Hamas took 250 captives back to Gaza during their 7 October attack, with many Israelis holding Netanyahu responsible for security failures that led to this incident. There are still 116 captives held in the enclave.

Israeli protesters have been demanding that the government reach a captive deal and end its war.

Out of the 500 adults the Midgam research agency surveyed, 73 percent of Israel Jews and 69 percent of Palestinian citizens of Israel believe Netanyahu is "very" or "somewhat" responsible for the absence of a deal.

Over two-thirds felt the Israeli Prime Minister should be doing more, similar to the amount that finds him responsible for failing to reach a deal.

While one-third blame Hamas for failing to reach a deal, 31 percent blame Netanyahu, and 29 percent found Hamas and Netanyahu equally responsible.