A recent poll has revealed that a majority of Americans believe that Palestine should be recognized as a State by all UN members.
The survey, which quizzed 4,446 US adults, found that 58% of respondents agreed with the statement that “Palestine should be recognised as a country by all UN members”.
The number rose to 78% amongst Democrats, compared to 41% of Republicans. The poll also found that 59% of respondents believe that Israel’s military response in Gaza has been excessive.
The survey comes as global outrage grows against Israel’s campaign of destruction, starvation, and displacement in Gaza, which leading rights groups have labelled as a genocide.
Several US allies, including France, the United Kingdom, and Canada, have said that they intend to recognise Palestine as a state at the United Nations General Assembly next month.
However, the administration of US President Donald Trump has rejected international efforts to recognise a Palestinian state and dismissed the moves as meaningless.
The poll’s findings reflect a shift in public opinion in the US, with growing support for Palestine and increasing criticism of Israel’s actions in Gaza.
According to the survey, 77% of Democratic respondents agreed that “Israel should be recognised as a country by all UN members”, while 43% of US respondents in a separate YouGov poll said they believe Israel is committing genocide in Gaza.
Rights advocates have been calling on the international community to impose tangible consequences on Israel for abuses against Palestinians, including sanctions and an arms embargo.
Meanwhile, Israel continues to push forward with its settlement expansion plans in the occupied West Bank, despite international criticism.
Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich celebrated a newly announced plan for 3,400 illegal Israeli housing units between occupied East Jerusalem and Palestinian communities in the West Bank as an effort to eliminate the possibility of a Palestinian state.
“The Palestinian state is being erased from the table not by slogans but by deeds,” Smotrich said. “Every settlement, every neighbourhood, every housing unit is another nail in the coffin of this dangerous idea.”
Last year, the International Court of Justice ruled that Israel’s presence in the occupied Palestinian territories – Gaza and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem – is unlawful and should come to an end “as rapidly as possible”.
The Fourth Geneva Convention, to which Israel is a signatory, prohibits the occupying power from transferring “parts of its own civilian population into the territory it occupies”.
The US has historically supported the two-state solution, but its actions have often been at odds with this stated policy, providing Israel with billions of dollars in military aid as it further entrenches its occupation of the Palestinian territories.