While a majority of Americans still view the war in Gaza as personally important in their lives, their numbers are dropping, a survey shows.

With that decline also comes a drop in positive views of Israel and and that country’s leader, Benjamin Netanyahu, according to the Pew Research Center.

“As Americans look at the Middle East, fewer say the Israel-Hamas war is important to them personally – or important to U.S. national interests – than felt that way early last year…” the survey states. “In addition, the public’s views of Israel have turned more negative over the past three years.”

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Gaza War Importance Tracks Religious Affiliation

A majority of Americans still view the Israel-Hamas war as personally important — 54%. In January 2024, however, 65% of adults said the same thing.

That level of importance follows religious affiliation. Muslims and Protestants view the war as personally important at nearly the same rate — 68% for Muslims and 66% for Protestants. Nearly 93% of Jewish Americans describe the conflict as personally important while 74% call it “very important.”

About 56% of Catholics call the war important in their lives while 47% of those without any religious affiliation call it important.

Sentiment Toward Israel Has Soured

Americans’ views of Israel have turned negative in the years since the Hamas-led Oct. 7 attack on Israel.

In March 2022, 42% of U.S. adults held an unfavorable opinion of that country. That rate has increased to 53%. Those whose views are “very unfavorable” has nearly doubled, going from 10% in 2022 to 19% in 2025.

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More than half of Democrats feel negatively toward Israel compared to a quarter of Republicans.  Younger and older Democrats’ views have shifted unfavorably while it is mostly younger Republicans whose views changed.

Views of Netanyahu remain negative. When Pew Research asked people about their confidence in the prime minister last year, 53% said they have little or none. That rate tracked nearly the same at 52% in the center’s March survey.

Respondents Divided on Trump’s Approach

More than 50,000 Palestinians have died in the war following Hamas’ attack on Israel in 2023, according to the Associated Press. Hamas killed 1,200 people and still has 24 hostages, according to the Times of Israel.

Israel resumed its war against Hamas in Gaza last month after an eight-week crossfire.

Survey respondents are divided as to whether President Donald Trump is finding a balance between Israelis and Palestinians.

About 31% think he favors Israel too much while 29% think he’s found the right balance. Only 3% think he is favoring Palestine too much. Another 37% are unsure.

The question compares to Americans’ perception of former President Joe Biden. In a February 2024 survey, 22% said he favored Israel too much, and about 16% felt he favored Palestinians too much. About 21% felt he found the right balance.

Pew conducted the survey from March 24 to March 30. The organization received responses from 3,605 people across several demographics.