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We should be under no illusion that the postwar journey toward rebuilding Gaza will be smooth. There is not even a guarantee that the war will not resume. Still, there are sufficient indications of an international commitment, more so than for a long time, to move in this direction. Yet it remains a mammoth task to convince both sides that there is a path to peace, coexistence and reconciliation.
On the Palestinian side, there is, not surprisingly, much gloom and skepticism. A public opinion poll published by the Ramallah-based Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research last month found that 70 percent do not believe that the Trump plan will lead to a Palestinian state within the next five years, while 60 percent are doubtful it will permanently end the war. This deep-seated sense of uncertainty is derived from bitter experience, considering that it has taken two years to end the unprecedented, huge-scale carnage in Gaza and to impose a ceasefire, despite which Israel is continuing to kill Palestinian civilians.
Naturally, the mood among Palestinians is somber, but also defiant and, most definitely, not unhopeful. After all, they have shown remarkable resilience for many decades, long before this war, and even more so throughout it. Some of the findings in this survey will not make pleasant or easy reading in Israel and probably will not be welcome to those keen to be part of bringing this conflict to a peaceful end. However, opinion polls are an essential tool for informing us of the state of affairs at a specific point in time, serving in this case as a warning sign and helping decision-makers to devise policies that could shift public opinion in the desired direction.
