The moderate majority: Most Brits refuse to take sides over Gaza war

Nearly two-thirds of Britons still refuse to take a side in the Israel-Palestine conflict almost three years after the 7 October attacks, major new research reveals.

A nationwide study by More in Common found 62 percent of the public either sympathise with both sides, neither side, or do not know where they stand.

Despite the conflict dominating political debate and protests across Britain, just 12 percent say they sympathise more with Israel and 26 percent with the Palestinians.

Green voters are the striking exception, with 62 percent saying they sympathise more with the Palestinian side.

But the research, commissioned by the Pears Foundation, also reveals deepening concern about the safety of British Jews.

Just 43 percent now regard the UK as a safe place for Jewish people, down from 55 percent in May 2024. An equal proportion say it is unsafe.

Six in ten believe it has become more dangerous to be Jewish in Britain over the past few years, while 39 percent expect anti-Jewish hate crime to continue rising. Just nine percent think it will fall.

The findings follow a series of serious antisemitic incidents and attacks, including the stabbing of two Jewish men in Golders Green in April and an arson attack on Jewish ambulances in the area weeks earlier.

The impact was also raised during a focus group held for the research in Prestwich, Greater Manchester, near the site of the Heaton Park Synagogue attack.

One participant described a friend wearing a Star of David necklace being harassed by pro-Palestinian protesters at a march. Another said Jewish neighbours now remove their Star of David necklaces before going into town because they fear being targeted.

Kevin, a 68-year-old retired police officer who took part, said: “The community feels a need to spend, I would imagine, in the millions of pounds just to protect themselves so they can go about their daily life. Kids can go to school, they can go to shops, they can pray, they can worship. I think the government has got to take a massive responsibility for that.”

More in Common has tracked attitudes towards the conflict since shortly after 7 October, 2023.

The proportion sympathising more with Israel has fallen from 16 percent in November 2023 to 12 percent, while sympathy for the Palestinian side has risen from 18 to 26 percent. The latter figure remains below its 29 percent peak in July 2025.

Young people stand apart from the wider population, with 46 percent of 18 to 24-year olds saying they sympathise more with the Palestinian side.

There are also significant political differences. Some 38 percent of Labour supporters and 36 percent of Liberal Democrat supporters sympathise more with the Palestinians.

Reform voters are the only group more likely to sympathise with Israel than the Palestinians, by 34 percent to 10 percent, while Conservatives are almost evenly split at 17 and 18 percent respectively.

The study found that views of the conflict are also increasingly linked to how people perceive the safety of Jews and Muslims in Britain.

Among those who sympathise more with Israel, just 29 percent believe the UK is safe for Jews, compared with 54 percent of those who sympathise more with the Palestinians.

Luke Tryl, UK director of More in Common, said: “Almost three years ago, after the horrific 7 October attacks, we began tracking public opinion on the Israel-Palestine conflict. Since then, the public’s fundamental views have remained stable: few have taken a side, most feel sheer horror at the impact on civilians on both sides, and want the war to end.

“But while the public’s understanding of the conflict hasn’t changed, the conflict has affected life in Britain. As antisemitic incident reports rise, and following a spate of high-profile attacks, less than half of Britons now believe the UK is a safe place for Jews – and three in five say it is becoming more dangerous. Many Britons also worry about rising anti-Muslim hate, and that the conflict is deepening the dangers faced by both communities.”

Concern about relations between Britain’s Jewish and Muslim communities has also grown.

In October 2025, 56 percent believed British Jews and Muslims could live harmoniously despite disagreeing over Israel and Palestine. The latest research found 53 percent now believe tensions are inevitable while the two communities disagree over the conflict.

The report also examined attitudes towards the Government’s sanctions on goods and services from Israeli settlements in the West Bank.

Britons were more than twice as likely to support the measures as to oppose them, by 41 percent to 16 percent, while 28 percent neither supported nor opposed them.

But 37 percent believe the sanctions will make British Jews less safe, while 34 percent think they will make no difference.

The polling also exposed widespread uncertainty about Israeli settlements. Only 42 percent correctly identified Israeli settlers as Israelis living in the West Bank, while half said they were unsure.

More than a third of Green voters – 35 percent – said Israeli settlers referred to all Israeli citizens living in Israel.

The More in Common report, funded by the Pears Foundation, draws on nationally representative polling of more than 2,000 adults as well as the Greater Manchester focus group.

Most of the research was conducted before the Government announced the West Bank sanctions, with additional polling carried out from 11 to 15 September.