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Survey: 60% of American Jews Support Establishment of Palestinian State

A Palestinian flag hangs on a tent at the protest encampment at Tufts University in Medford, Massachusetts, on May 1, 2024. (AFP)
A Palestinian flag hangs on a tent at the protest encampment at Tufts University in Medford, Massachusetts, on May 1, 2024. (AFP)
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Survey: 60% of American Jews Support Establishment of Palestinian State

A Palestinian flag hangs on a tent at the protest encampment at Tufts University in Medford, Massachusetts, on May 1, 2024. (AFP)
A Palestinian flag hangs on a tent at the protest encampment at Tufts University in Medford, Massachusetts, on May 1, 2024. (AFP)

About 60% of American Jews support the establishment of a Palestinian state, found a survey by the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs last week.

The survey showed that American Jews are affected by the growing differences between their government and Israel, and therefore, share views that differ from Israeli public.

About 52% of the 511 American Jews surveyed by the Center regarding the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict said they supported US President Joe Biden’s decision to potentially withhold arms shipments to Israel if it continued its offensive in the Rafah border.

Dr. Irwin J. Mansdorf, the head of the team of researchers that conducted the survey, said approximately 33% of respondents agreed with the accusation that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza, including 13% who said they strongly agree.

He noted that in the aftermath of the Israeli army’s entry into the Rafah border area and Biden’s announcement of a potential arms embargo should Israel continue its offensive into Rafah, the Center noticed a great deal of activity both in the media and on the American streets.

The survey aims mainly to highlight the views of American Jews on a number of subjects and how they may have been influenced by events in Israel, Gaza, and in the United States, Mansdorf said.

Its results indicate a general feeling of apprehension and concern for the future of American Jewry.

Despite a significant awareness of the complex situation, there is a notable suspicion and skepticism towards Israel and the actions of its government led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Also, support for Israel remains robust but conditional. About a quarter indicated unconditional support, while another quarter supported Israel but not the current Israeli government.

Mansdorf explained that although a third of the respondents increased their support for Israel as a result of pro-Palestinian demonstrations at universities, a quarter indicated that their support for Israel had decreased.

Meanwhile, 28% of the respondents expressed great concern about their future or their family's future as Americans Jews in light of events unfolding on US campuses. Furthermore, 13% expressed little concern, while only 8% expressed no concern at all.

The survey also shed light on the attitude of American Jews towards the upcoming US elections. It said 26% of respondents said they were closer to Biden while only 13% indicated that they would abstain from voting. Despite the arms embargo on Israel, Biden is still absolutely ahead of other Jewish competitors in the United States, the survey showed.

Mansdorf said American Jews are also concerned about personal relationships with non-Jews, which had reportedly deteriorated since the onset of anti-Israel demonstrations in the US.

Most respondents said they experienced negative impacts in their relationships with non-Jewish neighbors, friends, and colleagues as a result of the war and demonstrations.

When considering voting for progressive candidates like Rashida Tlaib or Ilhan Omar over a moderate Republican, 26% of respondents said they would, with 13% abstaining and a similar amount expressing indecisiveness.

Also, the survey showed that Biden enjoys substantial support for re-election, leading former US President Donald Trump by a wide margin (52-11).

While support for a two-state solution to end the Palestinian-Israel conflict is declining among Israeli public opinion, the support among US Jews is rising, the survey revealed.

It said 12% of respondents back a totally independent Palestinian state with no conditions attached, 24% support a totally independent Palestinian state that must recognize Israel as a Jewish state, while 25% said an independent state for Palestinians must be demilitarized and accept Israel as a Jewish state.

It then showed that 16% support a confederation between Israel and a Palestinian entity with negotiated security arrangements while 5% said they are against any form of Palestinian state.

Mansdorf concluded that the survey highlights a community in flux, grappling with its traditional liberal values and evolving perspectives on Israel.

While support for Israel remains strong, it is increasingly conditional, reflecting a shift in how American Jewry relates to the current Israeli government and the broader conflict, the survey said.

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Russia Skirts Western Sanctions to Ramp up Its Military Footprint in Africa 

This satellite image provided by Planet Labs PBC shows trucks lined up on a dock as the Russian-flagged cargo ship, Siyanie Severa, unloads its cargo, May 29, 2025, in Bata, Equatorial Guinea. (Planet Labs PBC via AP)
This satellite image provided by Planet Labs PBC shows trucks lined up on a dock as the Russian-flagged cargo ship, Siyanie Severa, unloads its cargo, May 29, 2025, in Bata, Equatorial Guinea. (Planet Labs PBC via AP)
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Russia Skirts Western Sanctions to Ramp up Its Military Footprint in Africa 

This satellite image provided by Planet Labs PBC shows trucks lined up on a dock as the Russian-flagged cargo ship, Siyanie Severa, unloads its cargo, May 29, 2025, in Bata, Equatorial Guinea. (Planet Labs PBC via AP)
This satellite image provided by Planet Labs PBC shows trucks lined up on a dock as the Russian-flagged cargo ship, Siyanie Severa, unloads its cargo, May 29, 2025, in Bata, Equatorial Guinea. (Planet Labs PBC via AP)

Even as it pounds Ukraine, Russia is expanding its military footprint in Africa, delivering sophisticated weaponry to sub-Saharan conflict zones where a Kremlin-controlled armed force is on the rise. Skirting sanctions imposed by Western nations, Moscow is using cargo ships to send tanks, armored vehicles, artillery and other high-value equipment to West Africa, The Associated Press has found.

Relying on satellite imagery and radio signals, AP tracked a convoy of Russian-flagged cargo ships as they made a nearly one-month journey from the Baltic Sea. The ships carried howitzers, radio jamming equipment and other military hardware, according to military officials in Europe who closely monitored them. The deliveries could strengthen Russia’s fledgling Africa Corps as Moscow competes with the United States, Europe and China for greater influence across the continent.

The two-year-old Africa Corps, which has links to a covert branch of Russia’s army, is ascendant at a time when US and European troops have been withdrawing from the region, forced out by sub-Saharan nations turning to Russia for security.

Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger have been battling fighters linked with al-Qaeda and the ISIS group for more than a decade.

At first, mercenary groups with an arms-length relationship to the Kremlin entered the fray in Africa. But increasingly, Russia is deploying its military might, and intelligence services, more directly.

"We intend to expand our cooperation with African countries in all spheres, with an emphasis on economic cooperation and investments," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said. "This cooperation includes sensitive areas linked to defense and security."

From the ports, Russian weapons are trucked to Mali Russia's 8,800-ton Baltic Leader and 5,800-ton Patria are among hundreds of ships that Western nations have sanctioned to choke off resources for Russia's war in Ukraine. The ships docked and unloaded in Conakry, Guinea, in late May, AP satellite images showed.

Other ships made deliveries to the same port in January. They delivered tanks, armored vehicles and other hardware that was then trucked overland to neighboring Mali, according to European military officials and a Malian blogger's video of the long convoy.

The military officials spoke to AP about Russian operations on condition of anonymity. The AP verified the blogger's video, geolocating it to the RN5 highway leading into Bamako, the Malian capital.

After the latest delivery in Conakry, trucks carrying Russian-made armored vehicles, howitzers and other equipment were again spotted on the overland route to Mali.

Malian broadcaster ORTM confirmed that the West African nation's army took delivery of new military equipment. AP analysis of its video and images filmed by the Malian blogger in the same spot as the January delivery identified a broad array of Russian-made hardware, including 152 mm artillery guns and other smaller canons.

AP also identified a wheeled, BTR-80 armored troop carrier with radio-jamming equipment, as well as Spartak armored vehicles and other armored carriers, some mounted with guns. The shipment also included at least two semi-inflatable small boats, one with a Russian flag painted on its hull, as well as tanker trucks, some marked "inflammable" in Russian on their sides.

The military officials who spoke to AP said they believe Russia has earmarked the most potent equipment — notably the artillery and jamming equipment — for its Africa Corps, not Malian armed forces. Africa Corps appears to have been given air power, too, with satellites spotting at least one Su-24 fighter-bomber at a Bamako air base in recent months.

Moscow's notorious secret unit

For years, French forces supported counterinsurgency operations in Mali and neighboring Burkina Faso and Niger. But France pulled out its troops after coups in Mali in 2020 and 2021, in Burkina Faso in 2022 and Niger in 2023. Russian mercenaries stepped into the vacuum.

Wagner Group, the most notable, deployed to Sudan in 2017 and expanded to other African countries, often in exchange for mining concessions.

It earned a reputation for brutality, accused by Western countries and UN experts of human rights abuses, including in Central African Republic, Libya and Mali.

Of 33 African countries in which Russian military contractors were active, the majority were Wagner-controlled, according to US government-sponsored research by RAND.

But after Wagner forces mutinied in Russia in 2023 and their leader, Yevgeny Prigozhin, was killed two months later in a suspicious plane crash, Moscow tightened its grip. Russian military operations in Africa were restructured, with the Kremlin taking greater control through Africa Corps.

It is overseen by the commander of Unit 29155, one of the most notorious branches of Russia’s shadowy GRU military intelligence service, according to the European Union. Unit 29155 has been accused of covertly attacking Western interests for years, including through sabotage and assassination attempts.

The EU in December targeted Unit 29155 Maj. Gen. Andrey Averyanov with sanctions, alleging that he is in charge of Africa Corps operations.

"In many African countries, Russian forces provide security to military juntas that have overthrown legitimate democratic governments, gravely worsening the stability, security and democracy of the countries," the EU sanctions ruling said. These operations are financed by exploiting the continent's natural resources, the ruling added.

The Russian Ministry of Defense didn’t immediately respond to questions about Averyanov’s role in Africa Corps.

Africa Corps recruitment

Researchers and military officials say the flow of weapons from Russia appears to be speeding Africa Corps’ ascendancy over Wagner, helping it win over mercenaries that have remained loyal to the group. Africa Corps is also recruiting in Russia, offering payments of up to 2.1 million rubles ($26,500), and even plots of land, for signing a contract with the Ministry of Defense, plus more on deployment.

Within days of the latest equipment delivery, Wagner announced its withdrawal from Mali, declaring "mission accomplished" in a Telegram post.

Africa Corps said in a separate post that it would remain.

The changeover from Wagner to Africa Corps in Mali could be a forerunner for other similar transitions elsewhere on the continent, said Julia Stanyard, a researcher of Russian mercenary activity in Africa.

"Bringing in this sort of brand-new sophisticated weaponry, and new armored vehicles and that sort of thing, is quite a bit of a shift," said Stanyard, of the Switzerland-based Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime.

Armed groups in Mali have inflicted heavy losses on Malian troops and Russian mercenaries. The al-Qaeda linked group JNIM killed dozens of soldiers in an attack this month on a military base. Insurgents also killed dozens of Wagner mercenaries in northern Mali last July.