German public opinion has shifted dramatically against Israel, with 57% now holding a negative view of the country following its military actions in Gaza, according to a new survey released Friday.
The poll by Allensbach research institute for the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung newspaper marks a striking reversal from 2022, when only 23% expressed negative views of Israel.
The survey found growing concerns about Israel’s military attacks, with 65% of Germans considering Israel’s actions in Gaza “inappropriate.” Only 13% voiced support for the military campaign.
In a particularly notable finding, 73% of respondents indicated they saw “some truth” in the statement that Israel’s actions in Gaza constitute “genocide,” while only 9% explicitly rejected this characterization.
Erm, not just Germans. I would suggest the majority of Europeans that understand right from wrong.
But the germans are usually the last ones to do so. The fact that the apartheid regime is losing favorability in Germany is basically a death knell
Finally joined the majority of the world
The story of Israel is a story as old as time. An abuse victim growing up to become the abuser and repeat the cycle.
Fellow German here. Since October 2023 the information regarding Israel x Gaza has been wonky. Before that in history class (~10 years ago) the conflict has been viewed as “They are both responsible for the current state, peace talks never worked, sometimes there was hope but both did bad things”. The focus was in general more on israel as a state and gaza as the less defined part that suffers. Personally, I was never happy with a country that defines itself by their religion. I also felt like taking Israel back after such a long time and driving out the inhabitants is difficult to defend.
October 2023: The government immediately stood behind Israel and it took a long time until Israel’s behaviour was really questioned by journalists/media. Politicians still hold back. Many Germans, me included, thought something along the lines of “it is a very complex situation that goes back years. It was never resolved and it is understandable to some degree that Israel never wants to be terrorised like this again.” - a bit like America’s actions after 9/11.
For me the greatest shift came with the killed aid workers and finally with Amnesty International’s recognition of a genocide. I didn’t entirely trust any (whether pro or con) media footage before that due to claims from both sides that the other side is faking them.
Before the election I asked the parties what their plans are regarding Israel and Gaza. None answered. A while ago I have asked the new government what their plans are and linked the Amnesty International genocide pdf. I got an answer but just a forwarding to another agency which I haven’t heard back from yet.
I still think the conflict is rather complex, but Israel is currently largely at fault. I have no idea how the situation can ever be solved as I don’t see a power great and willing enough to enforce any peaceful contract between the parties. While I think it was unjust to recreate Israel the way it was recreated, I don’t think it’s feasible to undo a state. The ideal solution would be to unify both countries under a good constitution that gives everyone equal rights, review the stealing of land to find compromises and forget everything so that the coming generations are unable to not see that we are all equal but this will never happen.
Finally!
