44% of Muslims in America support terror group Hamas: Pew poll

Nearly half of Muslim Americans have a favorable view of the terrorist group Hamas, as attitudes toward Israel and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict continue to shift among Americans.

According to a Pew Research Center survey from July, 44 percent of Muslim Americans support Hamas, while only 26 percent have a favorable view of the Israeli people. Among all Americans under the age of 30, 58 percent said they have a favorable view of the Palestinian people, compared with 32 percent who said the same about Israelis.

Pew also found a significant shift among younger Republicans. Republicans under 30 now view Palestinians and Israelis more similarly than older Republicans, a notable change from previous years when Republicans were far more favorable toward Israel.

Democrats have a more positive view of the Palestinian Authority than of the Israeli government. Younger Democrats were slightly more likely to view Hamas favorably than the Israeli government, while older Democrats had a slightly more favorable view of Israel's government.

Religious affiliation also played a significant role in Americans’ views of the conflict. Pew found that Jewish Americans and White evangelical Protestants were more favorable toward the Israeli people and government than other groups. White evangelical Protestants were the only religious group surveyed in which a majority expressed a favorable view of the Israeli government.

The findings come amid growing skepticism among Americans toward both Israel’s actions in the conflicts with Gaza and Iran, and influence within the US. Skeptism toward the Israeli government has remained particularly strong among Democrats, as seen by figures such as New York City Mayor Zhran Mamdani. But Republicans have also shown signs of declining support for Israel compared with previous years, as anti-Israel figures on the right such as Nick Fuentes have increased in prominence.