Britain is growing more polarised on Israel-Palestine. We can model a better way

New research shows rising division and suspicion. Our community can show what courage and compassionate clarity look like.

More in Common’s latest research After Choosing Sides shows support for Palestinians has grown in the last two years, from 18 to 26 per cent, while support for Israel has dipped to 14 per cent. Crucially, most Britons still do not take a side — but among those who do, particularly younger people and progressive activists, attitudes have hardened. Understanding these shifts isn’t only about Israel-Palestine; it’s about how Britons relate to one another in a moment of strain and mistrust.

Sympathy for Palestinians is driven by horror at the devastation in Gaza, a belief that Israel’s military response went too far, and recognition that Gazans live under Hamas — a group Britons overwhelmingly view with revulsion. Among progressive activists, identity and politics are tightly intertwined: this is the only group where a majority pick a side, and most choose Palestine. For many, it is not simply a view but part of who they are.

Some of these same dynamics are also reshaping parts of the UK Jewish community. According to JPR’s latest polling, 18 per cent of British Jews now support the Green Party — double the share around the 2024 election. As JPR’s executive director Jonathan Boyd notes: “The Greens are more likely to attract younger, unaffiliated and anti-Zionist members of the community.”

This presents a challenge for those of us working for equality, justice and cross-communal solidarity. A subset of progressive activists can undermine their own values through an insistence on ideological purity. More in Common’s research shows nearly half would not campaign alongside a Conservative even for a cause they support — and 28 per cent would refuse to work with someone who believes Israel has a right to exist.

The evidence is clear: antisemitism and anti-Muslim hate rise and fall together, fuelled by polarisation and dehumanising echo chambers

We must also confront difficult patterns in our own community. Among those who sympathise more with Israel, 46 per cent would consider ending a friendship with someone who posted in support of Palestinians — slightly more than the 43 per cent who say the same about pro-Israel posts among Palestine sympathisers. Too many assume that anyone expressing support for Palestinians is motivated by antisemitism. The data tells a different story: most Britons are horrified by suffering on all sides, want the hostages returned and the war to end, and reject Hamas’ ideology.

One of the most striking findings is the difference between how people respond to the word Zionism versus the idea that Jewish people should have a national home in Israel. Twenty-two per cent think negatively of someone who identifies as a Zionist, compared with nine per cent who say the same of someone who “supports the right of Jewish people to have a nation in Israel.” This gap doesn’t just confuse — it inflames misunderstanding. And it shows that despite the noise online, most Britons, including most progressive activists, are not hostile to Jewish collective rights. Our task is to meet people where they are, not where our fears tell us they must be.

At the same time, we cannot ignore where parts of the progressive and charity sectors have failed. I spend much of my time challenging prejudice within Jewish, LGBTQIA+ and progressive spaces, and confronting violent ultranationalism in Israel while advocating for equality and freedom for Israelis and Palestinians. Yet after the Heaton Park attack, I saw more clarity and solidarity from Palestinian and Muslim civil society leaders than from many who describe themselves as progressive allies. Too many were unwilling to name antisemitism directly or acknowledge the threat of Islamist extremism alongside rising far-right hate.

If we expect others to confront anti-Jewish racism, we must be equally consistent in challenging anti-Muslim hate, which has risen sharply too. This cannot become a competition between communities. The evidence is clear: antisemitism and anti-Muslim hate rise and fall together, fuelled by polarisation and dehumanising echo chambers.

Britain does not need more people choosing sides against one another. It needs people choosing the side of shared humanity, democratic values, and the belief that Israelis and Palestinians both deserve dignity and safety. We need the courage to talk across differences — and to name prejudice wherever it appears, especially within our own political homes.

If we retreat into camps defined by suspicion instead of compassion, we will lose far more than an argument about a conflict overseas. We risk losing the possibility of a shared future here at home.