Survey: Majority Says ‘Don’t Give Up Jerusalem

(IsraelNN.com) Almost two-thirds of Israeli citizens oppose a plan by top government officials to give up half of Jerusalem to the Palestinian Authority, according to a new poll by the Dahaf Institute.

The findings, which were published Tuesday in the Yediot Achronot newspaper, showed 68 percent of Israelis surveyed by Dr. Mina Tzemach do not want to hand over Arab neighborhoods in the capital to the PA. Some 52 percent of respondents said they would support a change in the city’s status as part of a comprehensive deal with the PA, but only if 80 percent of Knesset members backed it.

Israel should retain sovereignty over the holy sites, including the Western Wall and Temple Mount in Jerusalem, said 61 percent of respondents, 21 percent said they should be placed under an international authority, 16 percent supported the idea of a joint Israel-PA authority. Only 1 percent backed the idea of handing over the Temple Mount and Western Wall to the Jordanian monarchy.