The complex tapestry of Palestinian public opinion has been dramatically rewoven in the two years following the October 7, 2023, attacks and the subsequent war in Gaza. What began as a moment of overwhelming popular endorsement for the offensive has yielded to a period of deep and painful national reflection, widespread war fatigue, and a growing, unmistakable divergence in sentiment between the besieged Gaza Strip and the highly volatile West Bank. The latest public opinion polls from leading Palestinian research institutes reveal a society grappling with catastrophic loss, economic ruin, and a fundamental reassessment of its political direction, culminating in a powerful public mandate for change and diplomacy.
The initial support for the offensive was nearly unanimous. A poll conducted by the Arab World for Research and Development (AWRAD) in November 2023, just weeks into the conflict, captured the initial fervor, reporting that a vast majority of Palestinians viewed the action as justified. The figures were stark: 83% support in the West Bank and 63% in the Gaza Strip. This immediate, high degree of popular approval was driven by a shared, deep-seated belief that the attack was a necessary, strategic shock intended to shatter the status quo of occupation, blockade, and diplomatic neglect, thereby forcing the Palestinian cause back onto the global agenda. For many, it was seen as a decisive, though costly, counterpunch to decades of perceived systemic oppression.
However, as the military response continued—leading to unprecedented levels of civilian casualties, displacement, and the destruction of infrastructure—the weight of the war’s cost began to erode that initial sentiment. By September 2024, nearly a year after the offensive, this shift was clearly measurable. A key survey by the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research (PSR) marked the turning point, particularly in the Gaza Strip, the epicenter of the destruction. The poll found that a majority of Gazans, 57%, now believed that the decision to launch the offensive was a grave mistake, versus only 39% who still viewed it as correct.
In the West Bank, the drop in support was more gradual, but still evident. A majority of 64% of respondents there still backed the decision, maintaining a strong position rooted in their own escalating confrontations with Israeli forces and settlers, which have intensified dramatically since October 7. The difference in sentiment between the two territories—one experiencing an existential crisis, the other feeling a renewed call to arms against occupation—underscored the fragmented and regionally distinct political reality of the Palestinian people.
The Great Divide: 2025’s Sobering Numbers
The data from 2025 confirms that the downward trend in support has continued and the regional divisions have deepened dramatically. The latest polling by PCPSR finds that, overall, only about half of Palestinians (50%) still view Hamas’s decision to launch the attack as “correct.” This number represents a massive reduction in support from the initial highs recorded in late 2023.
The regional breakdown reveals the true impact of the war’s prolonged devastation. In the West Bank, a clear majority of 59% still viewed the action as justified, suggesting that the symbolic importance of the action as resistance to the occupation continues to outweigh the immediate costs. However, in the Gaza Strip, the relentless humanitarian catastrophe has solidified a shift towards regret: support for the decision to launch the attack has plummeted to just 38%. This stark regional disparity is perhaps the most significant political consequence of the war, establishing a chasm between the pragmatic survival instincts of Gazans and the ideological conviction that still holds sway in the West Bank. The majority in Gaza are now signaling that the strategic gain, if any, simply did not justify the immense human price.
Disinformation and the Atrocity Narrative
Amidst this volatility in strategic outlook, one narrative point remains remarkably constant and unified across Palestinian society: the rejection of claims regarding atrocities committed by Hamas fighters on October 7. Consistently across multiple polls, nearly 90% of Palestinians reject these claims, dismissing them as “enemy propaganda.”
This firm rejection is a testament to the deep-seated distrust of Israeli and Western narratives that has been forged by decades of conflict and media bias perceptions. For the vast majority of Palestinians, the ongoing suffering and mass civilian death toll in Gaza are the immediate, lived reality. This dominant trauma serves as a prism through which all counter-claims are viewed, effectively inoculating the public against external accounts of atrocities. This uniformity of belief highlights the profound psychological and informational barriers separating the Palestinian experience from international perceptions of the conflict.
The Pivot to Diplomacy: Negotiations Over Armed Struggle
The most profound and potentially far-reaching shift in Palestinian opinion is the increasing preference for a diplomatic solution over continued armed struggle. The collective exhaustion and ruin wrought by the war have fundamentally altered the calculus of resistance.
Data from the Jerusalem Media and Communication Center (JMCC) in late 2025 illustrates this dramatic pivot. The proportion of Palestinians who believe that peaceful negotiations are the best path to achieving national goals has surged, rising from a low 25.7% in September 2023 to 44.8% today. This near-doubling of support for diplomacy is a powerful indictment of the military path’s outcome.
Conversely, the percentage of the public preferring armed resistance as the best method has dropped significantly, falling to 27.8% from 33.7% before the war. This shift signals a desire to extract the political capital gained by the offensive while minimizing further humanitarian disaster. It serves as a clear message to international mediators and the Palestinian political establishment: the public is weary and is ready to throw its weight behind a credible, politically viable pathway to statehood.
A Unified Call for Leadership Change
Fueling this demand for a new political direction is a deep, near-universal disillusionment with the incumbent Palestinian leadership. The polls consistently paint a picture of a populace that views the Palestinian Authority (PA) as ineffective, non-representative, and tainted by corruption.
The ultimate expression of this dissatisfaction is the overwhelming call for President Mahmoud Abbas to step down. The May 2025 PCPSR poll found that a staggering 81% of Palestinians want Abbas to resign. This desire for leadership change is not merely political opposition; it is an urgent demand for a new political body capable of unifying the Palestinian national project and steering the post-war future.
The public’s critique of the PA is multifaceted, including its perceived failure to protect Palestinians from the spiraling violence in the West Bank and its lack of coherent action during the Gaza crisis. The latest surveys indicate only a tiny fraction of the public is satisfied with the PA’s performance during the war, while a majority rate the PA’s performance as poor or very poor.
In conclusion, two years after the October 7 offensive, Palestinian public opinion is characterized by profound disillusionment and a rising demand for political reform. The initial wave of support has receded under the immense cost of the war, particularly in Gaza, giving way to a majority preference for negotiation and a diplomatic settlement. The unifying factor across all segments of the society remains the urgent, overwhelming mandate for a new political guard, starting with the resignation of President Abbas, to lead the nation out of the current crisis and toward a lasting political solution.
Footage Charlie Kirk has been shot
Charlie Kirk has been shot
