Few back boycott, poll finds

ISRAEL IS seen as Britain’s leading Middle East ally by more than half of the British public, a poll has found.

But only one in five people feel “warm” towards Israel, slightly below the number who have positive feelings about Palestinians,

The Populus survey of 2,007 people was commissioned by advocacy group Bicom. Israel was regarded as the leading regional ally by 52 per cent of the sample. Almost two-thirds — 65 per cent — felt both sides were equally to blame for the conflict.

Forty-three per cent opposed the singling out of Israel for boycotts, with only 12 per cent in favour. Almost half (47 per cent) believed a boycott campaign would also hurt Palestinians. A quarter of therespondentssaidtheywouldback a boycott of Israeli settlements.

Bicom chief executive James Sorene said: “There is very little support for boycotts against Israel, which demonstrates that noisy campaigns have failed to make any impact.”

Shown the text of the 1917 Balfour Declaration, which expressed UK government support for a Jewish homeland, 40 per cent said that it was, in principle, the “right” position for Britain to support Zionist aims.