Negative views of Israel soar across 36 countries since Iran war, survey finds Submitted by MEE staff on Fri, 06/05/2026 - 19:55 Pew found a marked increase in unfavourable views of Israel, with nearly every country surveyed hosting majorities with negative views A person holds a placard with a photo of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu with the writing "Genocidal" during a protest against the detention and treatment by Israel of activists participating in the Global Sumud Flotilla, in Milan, northern Italy, on 21 May 2026 (Piero Cruciatti/AFP) Off Negative views of both Israel and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have soared since last year across Europe, Asia, the Middle East, and Latin America, according to a new poll from Pew Research Center. Out of 36 countries, majorities in 32 of them have either a very unfavourable or somewhat unfavourable view of Israel, with only respondents in India, Ghana, Nigeria and Kenya holding a favourable view of the country. The survey was conducted between 8 February and 13 May of this year. The US-Israel war on Iran started on 28 February and has had an impact on countries across the world, in part likely due to the economic impact of the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, where around 20 percent of the global oil supply passes through. Pew reported that across 36 countries, a median of 67 percent of adults held an unfavourable view of Israel, with just 25 percent holding a favourable view. Turkey, Pakistan, Malaysia, Indonesia, Japan, the West Bank and occupied East Jerusalem had the highest percentage of unfavourable views of Israel, with Turkey at 97 percent and Japan at 83 percent. In the Anglophone world, specifically the US, Canada, Australia and the UK, all had majorities that held unfavourable views of Israel at 60, 65, 79, and 69 percent respectively.