Latest Zogby Poll: America Always Tips to Israel's Side

Americans overwhelmingly see the fighting in Lebanon between Hezbollah and Israel as part of a much "wider" problem. Read carefully and you'll see that Israel does much better in public opinion polls than the Lebanese or Palestinians.

There's lots more detail on this particular poll, but some important points appear here:

A majority of Americans believe the battles now being fought across the Israel–Lebanon border are the beginnings of a wider conflict – one that could result in a war that spans the globe, a new Zogby International telephone poll shows.
The survey included 1,034 likely voters nationwide, and was conducted July 21–25, 2006. It carries a margin of error of +/– 3.1 percentage points.

Asked about their view of the conflict, 29% said they think the conflict between Israeli and Hezbollah forces will lead to a full–blown regional war enveloping several nations, while 19% said they think a world war will result. Another 17% said they think the war will widen to include Lebanese national forces, but will go no further.

Just 24% said they think the current fighting is a typical short–lived skirmish between aggrieved parties.

A bare majority of Americans – 51% – said they sympathize with Israel rather than Lebanon in the current fighting, while 13% said they sympathize with Lebanon. Asked who is more to blame for the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah, 61% put the blame on Hezbollah, while 12% blame Israel, and 20% said they were not sure.

Asked about the conflict between Israel and Palestinians in Gaza, 50% said they sympathize with Israel, compared to 15% who take the side of the Palestinians. The balance of respondents said they were either unsure of sympathized with neither party.