International reactions to the Gaza war

On 7 October 2023, a large escalation of the Gaza–Israel conflict began with a coordinated offensive by multiple Palestinian militant groups against Israel. A number of countries, including many of Israel's Western allies, such as the United States and a number of European countries, condemned the attacks by Hamas, expressed solidarity for Israel and stated that Israel has a right to defend itself from armed attacks, while countries of the Muslim world (including the Axis of Resistance) have expressed support for the Palestinians, blaming the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories as being the root cause for the escalation of violence. The events prompted several world leaders to announce their intention to visit Israel, including US President Joe Biden, French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, and British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak.
Numerous countries called for a ceasefire and de-escalation. International organizations, student organizations, charities, ecumenical Christian organizations, and Jewish and Islamic groups commented on the situation. On 27 October 2023, the United Nations General Assembly passed a resolution calling for an immediate and sustained humanitarian truce and cessation of hostilities, adopted by a vote of 121 states to 14, with 44 abstentions. As of 13 November 2024, Belize, Bolivia, Colombia, and Nicaragua have severed diplomatic relations with Israel, while Bahrain, Chad, Chile, Honduras, Jordan, South Africa and Turkey have recalled their ambassadors from Israel, citing Israeli actions during the war.
Chris Pine, Mark Hamill, Billy Porter, Ziggy Marley, Mekhi Phifer, Andy Garcia, Tracy-Ann Oberman, George Lopez, Ryan Murphy, Dana Goldberg, Jason Alexander, Eli Roth, Ryan Kavanaugh, Jeremy Piven, Aaron Bay-Schuck, Marty Singer, Antoine Fuqua, Mayim Bialik, Liev Schreiber, Amy Schumer, Michael Douglas and Jerry Seinfeld were among the more than 700 celebrities including Hollywood professionals who signed an open letter on 12 October condemning Hamas and demanding the safe return of hostages held in Gaza. The letter read: "As Israel takes the necessary steps to defend its citizens in the coming days and weeks, social media will be overrun by an orchestrated misinformation campaign spearheaded by Iran. We urge everyone to remember the horrific images that came out of Israel and to not amplify or fall for their propaganda."
Several hundred Hollywood figures including Jordan Peele, David Oyelowo, Chris Rock, Taika Waititi, Ewan McGregor, James Corden, Matthew Weiner, Aaron Sorkin, Judd Apatow, Greg Berlanti, Bradley Cooper, Eugene Levy, Jon Hamm, Will Ferrell, Constance Wu, Jeff Goldblum, Bob Odenkirk and Tiffany Haddish signed a letter on 23 October urging the release of the hostages and thanking US President Biden for his leadership in the Gaza war. The letter read: "Thank you for your unshakable moral conviction, leadership and support for the Jewish people, who have been terrorized by Hamas since the group’s founding over 35 years ago, and for the Palestinians, who have also been terrorized, oppressed and victimized by Hamas for the last 17 years that the group has been governing Gaza."
Drake, Jennifer Lopez, Bella and Gigi Hadid, Michael Stipe, Cate Blanchett, Zayn Malik, Frank Ocean, Rachel McAdams, Oscar Isaac, Bradley Cooper, David Oyelowo, Ben Affleck, John Cusack, Kristen Stewart, Channing Tatum, Quinta Brunson, Sandra Oh and Joaquin Phoenix, among many others, as part of a group called Artists4Ceasefire, signed a letter urging President Joe Biden and Congress to call for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza. The letter reads: "We believe all life is sacred, no matter faith or ethnicity and we condemn the killing of Palestinian and Israeli civilians." The letter was also signed by Tom Hardy, Milla Jovovich, Richard Gere, Peter Gabriel, Viggo Mortensen, Kirsten Dunst, Annie Lennox, Alyssa Milano, Jim Jarmusch, Brian Cox, Michael Moore, Andrew Garfield, Alfonso Cuarón, Selena Gomez, Janelle Monáe, Lupita Nyong'o, Jenna Ortega, Mark Ruffalo, Cynthia Nixon and Mark Rylance.
In November 2023, more than 4000 musicians, including Zack de la Rocha, Tom Morello, Bikini Kill, Pulp, Lucy Dacus, Mogwai and Kali Uchis, signed an open letter calling for a ceasefire in the Gaza war. The letter was also signed by Serj Tankian, Denzel Curry, Brian Eno, Kid Cudi, Olof Dreijer, Bonnie "Prince" Billy, Keiyaa, Pink Siifu, Laurel Halo, Mykki Blanco and L'Rain.
Thousands of artists and cultural workers, including Jesse Darling, Joanna Piotrowska, Nan Goldin, Michael Rakowitz and Leila Sansour, signed a petition calling for Israel to be excluded from the Venice Biennale. 400 celebrities, including British actress Helen Mirren, British singer Boy George, American musician Gene Simmons, American producer Scooter Braun, and American actresses Julianna Margulies and Emmy Rossum signed a letter supporting Israel's participation in the 2024 Eurovision competition. More than 2,400 musicians and artists from Finland, Iceland and Sweden, including Karin Dreijer, First Aid Kit, Eric Saade and Malena Ernman, signed an open letter calling for Israel to be excluded from the 2024 Eurovision.
Palestinian sports organizations and sports organizations from Arab countries have called for sanctions to be imposed against Israel and to prevent its participation in the 2024 Summer Olympics due to the Gaza war. The calls from the organizations have been prompted by concerns about the war's impact on Palestinian athletes and sports facilities. In November 2023, Russia accused the International Olympic Committee of having double standards by not sanctioning Israel due to its military actions in Gaza and occupation of Palestine, as Palestine is also an IOC member. In January 2024, over 300 Palestinian sports clubs called for Israel to be barred from the 2024 Olympics after Israeli airstrikes had killed Palestine's Olympic football team coach, and damaged the headquarters of the Palestine Olympic Committee in Gaza. In February 2024, several left-wing French lawmakers sent a letter to the IOC proposing to sanction Israeli athletes while only allowing them to participate under the Individual Neutral Athlete label. The IOC has cautioned athletes against boycotting or discriminating others, stating that immediate action will follow any discriminatory behavior such as the case of Algerian judoka Fethi Nourine, who received a ten-year ban following his refusal to fight Tohar Butbul, an Israeli in 2020. The IOC also stated that athletes are not to be held accountable for their government's actions. Also, due to the continuation of the Israeli-Palestinian war, France asked America for help in securing the Olympic Games.
In March 2024, IOC President Thomas Bach made it clear there was no issue regarding Israel participating at the 2024 Summer Olympics and cautioned athletes against boycotts and discrimination.
On 8 October 2023, UEFA cancelled all of its scheduled football matches in Israel for the next two weeks, including a qualifier for the Euro 2024 tournament between Israel and Switzerland on 12 October. It also canceled the 2025 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualification games between Israel and Estonia on 12 October and between Israel and Germany on 17 October, as well as the 2024 UEFA European Under-17 Championship mini tournament on 11–17 October involving Israel, Belgium, Gibraltar and Wales. UEFA held a moment of silence for all Euro 2024 qualifying matches on 17 October for both the victims of the war in Israel as well as the Swedish fans that were murdered in Brussels a day prior. Israel later played the rest of their Euro 2024 qualification matches in Hungary, while Maccabi Haifa played a Europa League match in Cyprus before heading to Serbia alongside Maccabi Tel Aviv.
EuroLeague Basketball also suspended all home games for Israeli clubs, including Hapoel Tel Aviv B.C. and Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv, with the teams sending its players to Cyprus and Greece to possibly resume the season there. All EuroLeague and EuroCup matches held a moment of silence for the victims of the attack.
The National Football League, National Basketball Association, Major League Baseball, National Hockey League, and Major League Soccer, amongst several other North American leagues, all released statements condemning the terrorist attacks on Israeli civilians by Hamas while urging for peace for civilians in the region. Many teams in their respective leagues also released their own statements with the same message. However, there was criticism towards all the leagues and teams for not releasing statements for the Palestinian civilians that had also been killed in the conflict. All NFL teams during Week 6 held a moment of silence for the Israeli and American victims as well as those affected by the conflict, starting with a Thursday Night game between the Denver Broncos and Kansas City Chiefs. However, during the London game between the Baltimore Ravens and Tennessee Titans, the moment of silence was interrupted by some spectators chanting "Free Palestine".
In the United Kingdom, there was pressure for the English FA and the Premier League to release statements and honour the victims of the attacks by Hamas, with some noting that other tragedies, disasters, and social movements had been honoured much more quickly. Eventually the English FA honoured both the Israeli and Palestinian victims at a friendly with Australia and a UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying match with Italy. However, they did not light up Wembley Stadium in the colours of the Israeli flag, believed to be due to one of Australia's 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifier opponents being Palestine. The Premier League also honoured the victims following the international break. The FA has also banned the use of the phrase "from the river to the sea" on any players' social media following its use by Hamza Choudhury.
Following a request from the Palestinian Football Association's head Jibril Rajoub, the Algerian Football Federation offered to host "all official and non-official matches" of the Palestinian national team as part of its preparations for its qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup and 2027 Asian Cup. It also pledged to shoulder all associated costs. The PFA later accepted Algeria's request, though after FIFA and the AFC prevented the team from playing in Algeria, they selected Kuwait, Qatar, and other countries in the Islamic world instead. Lebanon, Palestine and Israel's neighbour to the north, were also forced to play the same 2026 World Cup and 2027 Asian Cup qualification in neutral ground due to the fear of the war's spillover to the country.
Celtic F.C. was fined 17,500 euros ($19,000) by UEFA after fans displayed a flag of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine during a Champions League match against Atletico Madrid on 25 October.
A number of people protested at the Paris Organizing Committee for the Olympic and Paralympic Games headquarters in the suburb of Saint-Denis, waving Palestinian flags and chanting slogans condemning Israel's "institutional involvement" in the Games as a result of the ongoing conflict in Gaza. The demonstrators urged Olympic authorities to restrict Israel's involvement in the Paris Games.
The left-wing Podemos party in Spain requested the exclusion of Israel from the Olympics and called on countries to boycott the competition if Israeli continued to participate. Ione Belarra, the Podemos party's secretary general and former minister of social rights in Spain, called for Israel to be removed from the Olympics.
During the 74th FIFA Congress on 17 May 2024 in Bangkok, the Palestinian Football Association called for a vote on suspending the IFA from both UEFA and FIFA, stating that the damage to football infrastructure and deaths of Palestinian footballers during the Gaza war were enough grounds to justify the action, while other supporters referred to other suspensions such as those of Apartheid South Africa from 1961 to 1991 and Russia following the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022. The IFA responded stating that their football was halted and that many of their footballers have been killed since 7 October 2023 while calling for peace and a future friendly between the two countries. Gianni Infantino would respond to the PFA stating that FIFA would conduct its own legal review and that the information about a final decision would be forwarded to the FIFA Council meeting on 3 October 2024 while also calling for peace. It was later decided that while Israel would not be suspended, FIFA would investigate the claims by the PFA.
Prior to qualification for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, the Norwegian Football Federation called for an investigation into Israel (who they were drawn against), stating that they wanted to end civilian causualties in the region.
Bayern Munich and Morocco defender Noussair Mazraoui posted in support of Palestine on social media. Liverpool and Egypt captain Mohamed Salah appealed for humanitarian aid to be allowed into Gaza and for the "massacres" and the "slaughter of innocent civilians" to stop; Al-Ittihad's French forward Karim Benzema called the bombing of Gaza "unjust". In response, French interior minister Gerald Darmanin accused him of having links to the Muslim Brotherhood.
OGC Nice suspended its Algerian defender Youcef Atal after he shared a video on Instagram from a Palestinian preacher purportedly calling for violence against Jewish people. He was later detained by French authorities and received an eight-month suspended sentence from a French court on charges of inciting hatred. 1. FSV Mainz 05 also suspended and later dismissed its Dutch forward Anwar El Ghazi after he made what the club called an “unacceptable” social media post about the war.
Following the al-Ahli Arab Hospital explosion, Tottenham Hotspur's Israeli winger Manor Solomon purportedly blamed Palestinians for “killing their own people and blaming Israel” in an Instagram post. Granada's Israeli forward Shon Weissman posted social media messages in support of his country following Hamas' attack. After receiving threats in response, he was excluded from a La Liga match against Osasuna on 20 October due to security issues.
Muslim American basketball player Enes Kanter said the Hamas attack was a "barbaric" act of terrorism that did not reflect Islamic teachings. On 12 November, he said anti-Israel protesters on college campuses were "brainwashed" and urged people not to get their information from TikTok.
Egyptian swimmer Abdelrahman Sameh and Tunisian Olympic swimmer Ahmed Hafnaoui were both criticized and subjected to death threats due to their support for Palestine on social media, with American swimmer Eli Cohen telling Hafnaoui he was asking people to “donate to terror” after the latter posted a link to a humanitarian fundraiser for war victims. Likewise, Israel Swimming Association Chairman Miki Halika wrote to the sport's international governing body World Aquatics urging it to “take action against swimmers who support terrorism”. Mixed-martial arts champion Khabib Nurmagomedov posted on Instagram that Israel was engaged in “genocide” in Gaza.
NBA star LeBron James, XFL co-owner Dwayne Johnson, former NFL players Julian Edelman and Tom Brady, and former NBA player Amar'e Stoudemire all made posts supporting peace in Israel. Israeli–American Baltimore Orioles pitcher Dean Kremer wore a Star of David during a playoff game against the Texas Rangers, as did Houston Astros shortstop Alex Bregman.
Israeli right-winger Sagiv Yehezkel was suspended from Antalyaspor and later detained by Turkish authorities after showing his bandaged wrist during a match against Trabzonspor with the message "100 days, 7/10" in support of hostages in Gaza on 14 January 2024, which Turkish Justice Minister Yılmaz Tunç claimed was an "ugly action supporting Israel's massacre in Gaza". Başakşehir ended its contract with Israeli player Eden Karzev after he re-posted a social media message with the hashtag "BringThemHomeNow", referring to the hostages held by Hamas.
On 16 February 2024 a coalition of several U.S. unions announced a call for a ceasefire. The unions claim to represent some nine million teachers, nurses, auto workers, flight attendants and others.
The ongoing humanitarian crisis resulting from the Israeli retaliatory operations in the Gaza Strip since October 2023 led to increasing calls that the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) exclude Israel from taking part in the Eurovision Song Contest 2024, with human rights activists urging other countries to boycott the event. Despite this, Israel ultimately appeared on the list of participants released by the EBU on 5 December 2023. The EBU said in a statement: "It is a competition for broadcasters - not governments - and the Israeli public broadcaster has participated in the Contest for 50 years. The Eurovision Song Contest remains a non-political event that unites audiences worldwide through music."
The Icelandic Association of Composers and Lyricists (FTT), which represents artists in Iceland, told its members in a statement to not participate in the Eurovision Song Contest 2024 unless Israel is removed from the competition, on the same grounds as Russia was in the last competition, due to Israel's conduct in the Gaza war. FTT also urged the Icelandic National Broadcaster (RÚV) to withdraw from the competition unless Israel is denied participation on the same grounds as Russia was due to its invasion of Ukraine.
The Transatlantic Civil Servants' Statement on Gaza is a public letter signed by over 800 currently serving officials in the United States and Europe which states that the policies of their governments during the Israel-Gaza war could amount to "grave violations of international law". The signatories are civil servants from the United States, the European Union, and 11 European countries including France, Germany, and the United Kingdom. The identities of the signers were not made public for fear of repercussions.
Numerous heads of state and government have gone to Israel, Ramallah, and Egypt for consultations.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Parliament President Roberta Metsola arrived in Israel on 13 October.
On 17 October, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz visited Israel to express solidarity with the country. On his departure from Ben-Gurion airport, he was evacuated to a shelter after a rocket alarm went off.
On 18 October, US President Joe Biden arrived in Israel and was received at Ben-Gurion airport by Israeli President Isaac Herzog and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. At a news conference, he said Israel did not commit the al-Ahli hospital bombing in Gaza and blamed what he called "the other team" for the attack. In the wake of the attack, a summit in Amman hosted by King Abdullah II that was also to be attended by Biden, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el Sisi was cancelled by the Jordanian government.
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak arrived in Israel on 19 October, in order to meet Netanyahu and offer his condolences for the civilians killed in the initial attacks. On 21 October 2023, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni visited Israel to express solidarity with the country. French President Emmanuel Macron arrived in Israel on 24 October. Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala arrived in Israel on 25 October. During the visit of Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez and Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo, Netanyahu was asked to respect international law, and Sánchez announced that Spain is ready to recognize the State of Palestine. This triggered a harsh reaction from Israeli foreign minister Eli Cohen, who subsequently accused both prime ministers of "giving support to terrorism" in Israel.
On 6 February 2024, Argentine president Javier Milei became the first Latin American president to visit Israel since the start of the war, where he condemned Hamas attacks and confirmed his position of moving the Argentine embassy to Jerusalem.
Demonstrations took place in many Middle Eastern countries, such as Yemen, Jordan, Lebanon, Kuwait, Turkey, Qatar, Bahrain, Syria, Egypt, Iraq and Iran in solidarity with the Palestinian groups. There were reports that many Iranians avoided these demonstrations and condemned the attacks online. Pro-Palestinian rallies were also held in Australia, Spain, South Africa, Pakistan, Libya, Tunisia, Morocco, Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka, Serbia, Greece, Chile, Belgium, Italy, Philippines, South Korea, Ireland, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bolivia, Sweden and Denmark.
Rallies in support of both Israel and Palestine were held across Canada and the United States.
On 9 October, German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier said that he would not tolerate public celebrations of the Hamas attacks. The German Green Party asked for restrictions on organizations which openly support Hamas. The liberal conservative Christian Democratic Union of Germany asked for those who supported Hamas to have their German citizenship revoked. The Central Council of Jews in Germany and the Israeli ambassador both asked for actions to be taken. Chancellor Olaf Scholz announced plans to ban the pro-Palestinian group Samidoun after it was pictured handing out sweets in Berlin to celebrate Hamas' attack on 7 October. Police subsequently banned pro-Palestine demonstrations in Berlin, while French police arrested ten people in rallies in Lille and in Paris' Place de la République after the government issued a similar ban. Amnesty International called on European countries to safeguard the right to protest, saying that many countries "are unlawfully restricting the right to protest".
In the United Kingdom, Foreign Secretary James Cleverly urged Palestine supporters to stay home, saying that their protests were causing concern in the Jewish community. Citing laws prohibiting explicit support for banned organisations, authorities arrested a woman in Brighton for making a speech in support of Hamas at a protest. One rally in London drew an estimated 100,000 protestors in support of the Palestinians. 60,000 people later marched in London to protest against a rise in antisemitism from the war. At an October rally in Dublin Ireland, former justice minister Alan Shatter voiced support for Israel and denounced "the third Reich on the streets of Dublin."
Several landmarks, such as Taipei 101, the Sydney Opera House, the Brandenburg Gate, the White House, and the Eiffel Tower, were lit up in the colors of the Israeli flag.
People in some Muslim countries have boycotted Western businesses, especially American ones such as Starbucks, McDonald's and Coca-Cola, reflecting anger at Western governments' support for Israel.
Campaigners in Derry, Northern Ireland persuaded O'Neills to remove Puma products because of the sports brand's sponsoring of the Israeli Football Association. Starbucks was targeted in Keighley, West Yorkshire, with protesters smashing the shop's windows, following the corporation's decision to sue the Starbuck Workers United union after the labour organisation posted on social media support for Palestine.
Direct action was taken at arms factories in the United States and the United Kingdom that supplied arms to Israel, such as Lockheed Martin, General Dynamics, Textron, Boeing, Raytheon Technologies and Northrop Grumman. For instance, on 10 November 2023, trade unionists in Rochester, Kent, blocked the entrances to a BAE Systems factory, stating the facility manufactured military aircraft components used to bomb Gaza; and on 16 November, Palestine Action occupied a Leonardo factory in Southampton, stopping production. ZIM was barred from entering ports in Malaysia.
Student protesters called on Columbia University to financially divest from any company with business ties to the Israeli government, including Microsoft, Google and Amazon. NYU Alumni for Palestine called on New York University to "terminate all vendor contracts with companies playing active roles in the military occupation in Palestine and ongoing genocide in Gaza, namely Cisco, Lockheed Martin, Caterpillar and General Electric".
President Biden called on Congress to pass $14.3 billion in emergency military aid to Israel. Israel already receives $3.8 billion a year in military aid. The Biden Administration caused controversy after bypassing Congress on multiple occasions to authorize arms sales to the Israeli military.
In December 2023, a Wall Street Journal report stated that US arms shipments to Israel since the start of the war included 15,000 bombs and 57,000 155mm artillery shells, mostly carried on C-17 military cargo planes. U.S. has also sent more than 5,000 unguided Mk82 bombs, more than 5,400 Mk84 bombs, about 1,000 small diameter GBU-39 bombs, and almost 3,000 JDAMs. It also said that some of the bloodiest Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip involved the use of large US-made bombs, such as the one that destroyed an apartment complex in the Jabalia refugee camp and killed over a hundred people.
The United Kingdom, Germany, France, Canada, Australia, Spain, the Netherlands and Italy also supplied arms to Israel. On 29 February 2024, the European Parliament overwhelmingly rejected an arms embargo on Israel. In May 2024, a group of 300 Australian public servants called on the government to cease weapons transfers to Israel.
Serbia's state-owned arms manufacturer, Yugoimport SDPR exported weapons worth around $17.1 million to Israel, using IDF planes and civilian aircraft.
On 8 October, the Brazilian government announced a rescue operation of Brazilian nationals using an Airbus A330 of the Brazilian Air Force, accompanied by doctors and psychologists. Thai Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin put the Royal Thai Air Force on standby to evacuate its citizens if needed. Polish Defence Minister Mariusz Błaszczak announced that two C-130 transport planes would be deployed to evacuate 200 of its nationals from Israel.
Hungary evacuated 215 of its nationals from Israel using two aircraft on 9 October, while Romania evacuated 245 of its citizens, including two pilgrimage groups, on two TAROM planes and two private aircraft on the same day. Australia also announced repatriation flights. 300 Nigerian pilgrims in Israel fled to Jordan before being airlifted home.
On 12 October, the United Kingdom arranged flights for its citizens in Israel; the first plane departed Ben-Gurion Airport that day. The government had said before that it would not be evacuating its nationals due to available commercial flights. However, the flights were commercial.
Nepal also arranged a Nepal Airlines flight to repatriate 253 of its citizens back home.
By 16 October, New Zealand had evacuated 55 of its citizens through mercy flights organised by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade and Etihad Airlines. Evacuees were flown to Abu Dhabi, where they were expected to make their own travel arrangements home. 70 New Zealanders remained behind, with 50 in Israel and 20 in the Palestinian Territories. The Foreign Ministry said that commercial options were available for them.
India launched Operation Ajay to repatriate people, mostly Indian nationals in Israel. 1,192 people have been repatriated as of 17 October.
In Britain, a YouGov poll conducted on 19 October found that 76% of respondents supported a ceasefire in the Gaza war. An Ipsos poll carried out on 20–23 October, found that 37% of British respondents wanted the UK government to be a neutral mediator in the conflict, 16% wanted Britain to stay out of the conflict at all, 13% would support Israel and 12% would support Palestine. According to a YouGov poll conducted on 7–8 November 2023, older people and Conservatives are more likely to sympathize with the Israelis, while younger people and Labour Party voters are more likely to sympathize with the Palestinians.
In November 2023, 59% of Canadians approved of the country's support for Israel in the Gaza war, while 18% disapproved.
According to a poll conducted by the Forsa Institute on behalf of newspaper Die Welt in December 2023, 45% of respondents in Germany agreed and 43% disagreed with the statement: "Israel's military action in the Gaza Strip is all in all appropriate." In the immediate aftermath of the Hamas attack on Israel, 44% of Germans said Germany has "a special obligation towards Israel." In December 2023, that number dropped to 37%.
A survey commissioned by Baltic News Service in November found that 38.1% of respondents in Lithuania supported Israel's actions in Gaza, 30.4% did not support and 31.5% had no opinion. Voters of the Homeland Union-Lithuanian Christian Democrats (58.8%), Union of Democrats "For Lithuania", Liberals' Movement and Freedom Party were most in favor of Israel's actions, while voters of Lithuanian Regions Party and People and Justice Union were least in favor.
According to the poll conducted by The Washington Institute for Near East Policy between 14 November and 6 December 2023, 96% of respondents in Saudi Arabia believed that Arab nations should sever relations with Israel, 95% of Saudis did not believe that Hamas killed civilians in its attacks on Israel, and 40% of Saudis expressed a positive view of Hamas.
According to a survey commissioned by the Blick newspaper on 10–15 November, 72% of Swiss respondents believed Israel had a right to defend itself and reply militarily in Gaza while 67% felt Switzerland should temporarily suspend financial aid to the Palestinian occupied territories. At the same time, 58% said Switzerland's approval of the UN resolution for a ceasefire was “fair” or “quite fair”.
An 24 October survey in Taiwan from the Taiwanese Public Opinion Foundation [zh] had 35.1% of respondents sympathising with Israel, 14.8% sympathising with Palestine, 9.8% sympathising with neither, and 33.6% having no opinion.
In Turkey, a MetroPoll survey released on 25 October found that 34.5% of respondents wanted the government to remain neutral, 26.4% wanted the government to mediate, 18% wanted it express solidarity with the Palestinians while distancing itself from Hamas, and 11.3% wanted it to stand with Hamas.
A survey conducted by the Levada Center from 19 to 25 October 2023 found that 66% of Russian respondents expressed a neutral position on the conflict, 21% sympathized with the Palestinians, and 6% sympathized with Israel. 45% of respondents blamed the conflict's escalation on the United States and NATO (a view promoted by Russian state-controlled media and President Vladimir Putin), while 12% blamed Israel and 8% blamed Hamas.
A survey conducted by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology from 29 November to 9 December 2023 had 69% of Ukrainian respondents sympathising with Israel compared to only 1% sympathising with Palestine.
The Marist Poll published on 15 November found that 38% of Americans believe Israel has gone "too far" in its response to Hamas' attack. It also found that American respondents were more likely to sympathize with Israelis (61%) than Palestinians (30%).
A Quinnipiac study done following war revealed that 76% of American voters believed supporting Israel is in the national interest of the United States, and 64% approved of sending weapons and military equipment to Israel. This support was more pronounced among older age groups, with 51% of those under 35 disapproving of this action. According to a combined NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist poll, just 48% of millennials and members of Generation Z think that the US should openly support Israel, compared to 83% of the Baby boomers and 86% from the Silent and Greatest Generation (see also: Generation Z and the Israel-Hamas war). Gallup polling of Democrats' opinion of President Joe Biden's performance dropped by 11% during October 2023, which was attributed to Biden alienating some members of his party with his swift and decisive show of support for Israel. In November 2023, 31% of participants in a survey in the United States expressed their backing for providing weapons to Israel, whereas 43% expressed their opposition to this notion. The remaining respondents remained uncertain about their stance. Notably, Republicans exhibited the highest level of support for sending weapons to Israel, while approximately half of the Democrats were against it.
In November 2023, a Gallup poll found that 50% of respondents in the United States supported Israel's actions in Gaza, while 45% disapproved. 61% of white American respondents expressed support for Israel while only 30% of people of color did the same.
In December 2023, a New York Times and Siena College poll found that 44% of Americans believe that Israel should "stop its military campaign", even at the expense of hostages, while 39% believed the opposite. 48% believed that Israel is "not taking enough precautions to avoid civilian casualties", while 30% believed Israel was doing enough.
According to the poll conducted by the Harvard CAPS–Harris Poll on 17–18 January 2024, 67% of American respondents said that a ceasefire in Gaza should only happen after the release of all Israeli hostages and the removal of Hamas from power.
In a The Economist/YouGov poll released on 24 January 2024, 35% of U.S. adults agreed that Israel's military campaign against Palestinians amounts to genocide, 36% disagreed, and 29% were undecided. Among U.S. citizens aged 18–29, 49% of those surveyed agreed that Israel is committing genocide, with 24% disagreeing, and 27% uncertain. 74% of American respondents also believed that the initial Hamas attack was genocidal.
According to a poll conducted from 31 January to 7 February 2024 by the Group for Analyzing and Measuring Attitudes in Iran (GAMMAN), about 35% of Iranians blame Hamas for the war, 20% blame Israel, and 32% blame both sides.
In an Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll released on 2 February 2024, 50% of U.S. adults said that the military response from Israel in the Gaza Strip had gone too far, whereas 31% said that it had "been about right", and 15% thought that it had "not gone far enough".
In a Center for Economic and Policy Research poll released on 5 March 2024, 52% of U.S. citizens supported ending arms transfers to Israel. 62% of Americans who voted for Biden in 2020 supported halting arms sales, while 14% disagreed, whereas 30% of Trump voters supported the measure, and 55% opposed it.
In a Gallup Poll released on 27 March 2024, 55% of the responders in the United States disapproved of Israel's military action in Gaza, 36% approved, and 9% had no opinion. A poll from Generation Lab of 1,250 US college students conducted from 3–6 May reported that 8% had participated in a protest for either side.
The views espoused by members of Generation Z in the Western World in response to the Gaza war have gained the attention of researchers and political analysts, as there is a generational divide between Generation Z and older generations on topics such as the Israeli–Palestinian conflict, Hamas, and the American government's support for Israel. Notably, members of Generation Z are more likely to support Palestine and to oppose Israel than any other generation.
According to an October 2023 NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist National poll which surveyed 1,313 U.S. adults, 48% of Millennials and Generation Z said that the U.S. government should publicly voice support for Israel, compared to 63% of Generation X, 83% of Baby boomers, and 86% from the Silent and Greatest Generation.
Between 13 and 14 December 2023, an online survey was conducted by Harvard University and The Harris Poll among 2,034 Americans from all age groups. While the survey assessed a range of political issues, there were several questions about the Gaza war. While the Harvard-Harris poll found that 73% of those aged 18–24 believed that the 7 October attack was a terrorist attack and 66% of those aged 18–24 believed that the 7 October attack was genocidal in nature, 60% of those polled aged 18–24 believed that the 7 October 2023 attack was justified by Palestinian grievances, with smaller subsets of 50% stating that they sided with Hamas and 51% favoring a one-state solution where Israel would be ended and the land given completely to Hamas and the Palestinians. Furthermore, 67% of Generation Z respondents considered Jews to be oppressors, yet 69% of Generation Z respondents also stated that Israel has a right to exist.
Another poll in December 2023 was conducted by More in Common which surveyed various age groups, including Generation Z When members of Generation Z were asked whether they considered Hamas to be a terrorist organisation, Generation Z respondents were the most likely to consider Hamas to be freedom fighters and the least likely to consider Hamas a terrorist organisation.
Some research has credited the stance of Western countries' members of Generation Z to TikTok and social media trends on the platform, with Axios noting that the platform has a large amount of Palestinian content on the website. The site found that 87% of TikTok users who view #StandwithPalestine posts are under the age of 35. In comparison, only 66% of TikTok users who view #StandwithIsrael posts are under the age of 35. A trend was observed of Generation Z TikTok users sharing their conversion to Islam following the Israel-Hamas war. Lorenzo Vidino, director of the Programme on Extremism at George Washington University has attributed this trend to a desire among Generation Z to rebel against Western values. Vidino stated "At this point, what’s more rebellious, what’s more anti-Western and anti-capitalism and anti-establishment, than a conversion to Islam?".
Hugh Lovatt, a senior policy fellow with the Middle East and North Africa Programme at the European Council on Foreign Relations, analysed in January 2024, that the strong diplomatic and military support from much of the Western world (including US, UK, Germany) to Israel is "at odds with the attitudes of Western publics which continue to shift away from Israel". He said that during the Cold War, Israel sided with the West against the Arab countries supported by the Soviets, and Western leaders generally see Israel "as a fellow member of the liberal democratic club", which partially "explains the continued strong Western support for Israel – which has now largely become reflexive".
According to Andrew Stroehlein, writing for Human Rights Watch in October 2024, most countries of the world have supported their own side of the conflict, without caring for human rights.