Following the Israel-Hamas war, relations between Jews and Arabs in Israel have shown significant change. Surprisingly, 80% of Israel’s Arab citizens oppose the terrorist assault conducted by Hamas. These citizens also demonstrated a willingness to volunteer and assist impacted civilians. 70% of Arab citizens feel part of the country, and even Israeli Arab politician Mansour Abbas has denounced the attack. In addition to his denouncement, joint Jewish-Arab initiatives to assist those impacted have increased significantly.
Hamas militant attacks resulted in the deaths of many Arab citizens, sometimes by attackers who knew their identities. In addition, members of Islamic State used similar tactics. This trend prompted a tech company CEO who identified as a Palestinian first, to change his identity to an Israeli first and Palestinian second.
Although Jewish public opinions could still be formed, Netanyahu’s cabinet shows that the Jewish public isn’t aligning with the far-right. There are also growing calls to amend the controversial Nation-State law as positive views of the Druze community continue, showing a potential for more accommodating relations between Jews and Arabs.
