The majority of Israel's Jewish population opposes intolerance towards the country's Arab citizens and legislation proposals that hint at ethnic prejudice, according to the results of a poll published on Tuesday.
Some 48 percent of Jews oppose recent calls by rabbis not to rent apartments to Arab students, while 44 percent support them, reveals the poll, which was jointly conducted by the Harry S. Truman Institute at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research in Ramallah, Xinhua reported.
Additional findings showed that 52 percent oppose a bill pending in the parliament that would ban the use of burkas (face veil) by women in public places while 48 percent oppose another bill that would allow small communities to reject admission of new residents based on social, national or economic criteria.
As to a law that would require candidates for citizenship to pledge allegiance to Israel as a Jewish and democratic state, only 6 percent of Israeli Jews support such a law if it applies only to non-Jews while 55 percent of Jews and 17 percent of Israeli Arabs support passage of the bill if it would apply to all those seeking naturalization, Jews and none-Jews alike.
The poll's Palestinian sample size was 1,270 adults residing in the West Bank, East Jerusalem and Gaza Strip. The Israeli sample includes 511 adult Israeli Jews and 408 Israeli Arabs.
While the poll indicates that Israeli Jews who are in favor of prejudiced policies comprise the minority, over two-thirds of the Palestinians surveyed believed that the majority of Israelis support expressions of intolerance.
In regard to the peace process, the poll reveals that 54 percent of Israelis support negotiating with Islamic group Hamas in order to reach an agreement with the Palestinians that would end the conflict. A minority, 29 percent, support the continuation of unlimited construction in West Bank settlements.
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