Palestinians reject violence but favor one state, poll finds

WASHINGTON (JTA) — Palestinians favor negotiations and nonviolent means but still do not accept Israel’s legitimacy, a poll showed.

The Israel Project poll to be released Tuesday showed that a substantial majority of Palestinians see a two-state solution as a step toward a one-state solution and not as an end in itself. JTA obtained an advance copy of the survey.

Asked to choose between two statements, 66 percent of respondents favored "The real goal should be to start with a two-state solution but then move to it all being one Palestinian state" and 30 percent picked "I can accept permanently a two-state solution with a homeland for the Palestinian people living side by side with israel, a homeland for the Jewish people."

Asked whether they agreed with President Obama that "there should be two states: Palestine as the homeland for the Palestinian people and Israel as the homeland of the Jewish people," 34 percent accepted the formulation and 61 percent rejected it.

Majorities favored negotiating in similar numbers: 65 percent chose the statement "This is the time for diplomatic engagement with Israel" over "This is the time for violent resistance with Israel."

A narrower majority, 52-43 percent, said negotiations should resume under Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s parameters, which would keep Jerusalem united and would not allow Palestinian refugees to settle in Israel.

Respondents opposed firing rockets on Israeli cities, 59-22 percent, and the murder of an Israeli settler family, 42-29 percent, but favored "teaching songs and chants in Palestinian schools that talk about hating the Jews," 53-34 percent, and kidnapping and holding Israeli soldiers hostage, 62-27 percent.

The face-to-face survey carried out by the Greenberg-Quinlan-Rosner polling firm from June 22 to July 8 reached 1,010 Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza and had a margin of error of 3.1 percentage points.