Violence on Turkish-owned ship
Photo: Reuters
Michael Oren. Marathon of interviews
Photo: AP
WASHINGTON – The American public appears not to believe the Turkish-Arab version of the deadly Israeli raid
on a Gaza-bound flotilla. According to a poll published in the United States on Tuesday, 49% of Americans believe pro-Palestinian activists on the Turkish-owned ship are to blame for the incident, which left nine passengers dead.
However, 51% say Israel
should allow an international investigation of the incident. Twenty-five percent agree with the Israeli government and reject the idea of an international probe. Another 24% are undecided.
While Israelis have been criticizing the government and army's PR efforts following the incident, the survey – conducted by the Rasmussen Institute – reveals that only 19% of Americans think the Israelis are to blame and 32% are not sure.
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According to the poll, 49% of Americans agree that, generally speaking, most countries are too critical of Israel. Twenty-one percent say those countries are not critical enough, and 17% say neither. Seventy percent of respondents say they are following news reports on the flotilla raid.
The respondents were asked for their opinion on the US support for Israel at the United Nations and other international institutions. Only 24% said that, generally speaking, America was too supportive of Israel; 33% said the US was not supportive enough, while 32% said neither was the case.
The survey also showed that 58% of Americans view Israel as an ally, and only 2% view the Jewish state as an enemy. Seventy-three percent do not believe that Israel and the Palestinians will sign a peace agreement in the next 10 years.
Since the flotilla incident last week, Israeli Ambassador to the US Michael Oren has been visiting one television studio after another as part of Israel's PR efforts, and the current crisis appears to stress Oren's great advantage in the "hasbara" area.
His success is reminiscent of the work of two other Israeli diplomats: Former Consul-General in New York Alon Pinkas, who "flourished" during the al-Aqsa Intifada, and former Ambassador to the UN Dan Gillerman, who succeeded in explaining Israel's stand during the Second Lebanon War.
Roni Sofer contributed to this report