70% of Israelis favor captives' return over eliminating Hamas: Poll

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Al Mayadeen English + Israeli Media
16 Mar 2025 15:17
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The majority of illegal Israeli settlers prioritize the return of all captives held in Gaza over "eliminating Hamas".

Settlers take part in a protest in Tel Aviv, occupied Palestine, on March 9, 2025, demanding the immediate release of captives held in the Gaza Strip. (AP)

A poll conducted by the Facto SR Institute for the Israeli newspaper Israel Hayom, published on Sunday, found that about 70% of Israelis believe the top priority should be securing the return of all Israeli captives from Gaza, while only 23.3% consider "eliminating Hamas" the most important objective.

Similarly, 52.7% of respondents support moving to the second phase of a ceasefire deal, which would mean the release of all captives, even if it results in Hamas remaining in power and the war ending.

Meanwhile, 25.7% prefer extending the first phase, allowing prisoner releases in batches without officially ending the war, while 13.6% favor resuming intense fighting in Gaza.

The survey also revealed a significant divide between supporters of the ruling coalition and the opposition regarding why "Israel" has not advanced to the second phase of negotiations with Hamas.

Among opposition supporters, a clear majority (61.6%) believes the delay is due to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s political considerations and fear of his government collapsing. In contrast, only 4.6% of coalition supporters agree, attributing the holdup mainly to what they call “Hamas violations” and the desire to destroy the group before ending the war.

The divide is also evident in war priorities—86.6% of opposition voters see returning captives as the top priority, whereas in the ruling coalition, a slim majority (48.8%) supports that view, while 42.4% favor “destroying Hamas”.

Currently, about 59 Israeli captives are in Gaza, while the Israeli military estimates that 35 of them have been killed. "Israel", who has consistently violated the ceasefire terms and obstructed the agreed on prisoner exchange, has been insisting on the release of 10 living captives before moving on to the second phase of negotiations.

However, a Palestinian Resistance official, speaking to Al Mayadeen, said that "Hamas maintains that clear and binding guarantees must be in place before entering negotiations for Phase Two and prior to any prisoner release."

Meanwhile, US special envoy Steve Witkoff proposed the immediate release of 11 living captives along with half of the deceased ones.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in turn, directed the occupation's captive negotiation team on Saturday evening to prepare for further discussions in Doha.

The directive followed a high-level meeting between Netanyahu, top aides, and security officials, where officials briefed him on the latest developments in the ongoing negotiations. The delegation had returned from Doha on Friday.