A new poll shows 88% of Israelis support a prisoner exchange deal as Netanyahu’s Likud party loses ground amid the Gaza war.
A recent poll published on Friday by the Israeli daily Maariv highlights significant public support for a prisoner exchange agreement, with 88 percent of Israelis in favor.
The poll also underscores mounting dissatisfaction with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud party as its political fortunes decline amid the ongoing war in Gaza.
According to the survey, 52 percent of respondents expressed support for a comprehensive exchange deal, while 36 percent favored a partial agreement. Only 6 percent opposed any form of negotiation, and another 6 percent were undecided.
"We have no interest… in hurting people who are innocent. There are almost no innocent people in Gaza. Each of them, it's either his son or his brother or that he encourages it."
Last Monday: Minister Dudi Amsalem of the Likud party with a rather confused genocidal statement. https://t.co/ERUdyHtog5 pic.twitter.com/QNHKIm1Yhn
— B.M. (@ireallyhateyou) January 9, 2025
The poll suggests that Netanyahu’s political bloc would fail to secure a majority in the Knesset if elections were held today.
The Israeli Prime Minister’s alliance is projected to win only 49 seats, falling short of the 61 seats required for a governing coalition.
In contrast, opposition parties are expected to gain 61 seats, with Arab parties projected to hold an additional 10 seats.
This represents a shift from a similar survey conducted last week, which gave Netanyahu’s bloc 50 seats compared to 60 for the opposition.
The Likud party itself would secure just 22 seats, according to the latest poll, while the opposition National Unity Party, led by Benny Gantz, would win 19 seats.
Other projected results include Avigdor Lieberman’s Yisrael Beiteinu party with 15 seats, Yair Lapid’s Yesh Atid with 14 seats, Shas with 10 seats, and the far-right Jewish Power party, led by Itamar Ben Gvir, with six seats.
That the groups that founded Israel, Lehi, Irgun, and Hagannah…
Today’s @Likud_Party and @IDF pic.twitter.com/06iOQGDJvo
— 𝕻𝖆𝖓𝖓𝖘𝖙𝖎𝖌𝖆𝖙𝖔𝖗 (@hippyresident) January 10, 2025
The survey attributed the decline in Likud’s popularity to public frustration over the protracted conflict in Gaza, rising Israeli military casualties, the discovery of the bodies of two detainees, and the lack of progress in securing a comprehensive prisoner exchange agreement.
Despite growing calls for early elections, Netanyahu has ruled out the possibility, stating that his administration is focused on managing the ongoing war.
The Knesset, Israel’s 120-member legislative body, requires at least 61 seats to form a majority government. This latest poll reflects a dramatic shift in Israeli political dynamics, with Netanyahu’s grip on power increasingly under threat.
Ongoing Genocide
The ongoing Israeli assault on the Gaza Strip, which began on October 7, 2023, has led to a humanitarian crisis of unprecedented scale. As the death toll among besieged and starved Palestinian civilians continues to rise daily, Israel is currently facing charges of genocide against Palestinians before the International Court of Justice (ICJ).
According to Gaza’s Ministry of Health, at least 46,006 Palestinians have been killed, and 109,378 wounded in Israel’s ongoing genocide in Gaza starting on October 7, 2023.
The toll is expected to rise further, with at least 11,000 people still unaccounted for, presumed dead under the rubble of their homes across Gaza.
The war, which Palestinians call “Operation Al-Aqsa Flood,” began after a military operation carried out by Hamas on Israeli territory. Israel reports that 1,139 of its soldiers and civilians were killed during the initial attack on October 7. However, Israeli media have raised concerns that a significant number of Israeli casualties were caused by ‘friendly fire’ during the assault.
Human rights organizations, both Palestinian and international, have reported that the overwhelming majority of the casualties in Gaza are women and children. The ongoing violence has also exacerbated an acute famine, with thousands of children among the dead, highlighting the severity of the humanitarian disaster.
The war has displaced nearly two million people from their homes across Gaza, with the majority of the displaced forced into the already overcrowded southern region of the Strip. The population in Gaza remains trapped in the ongoing conflict, with little access to basic necessities such as food, water, and medical care.
(PC, Anadolu)
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