Obama “committed” to Israel’s peace and security

The Obama Administration has reiterated its support for Israel following a survey that showed that only six percent of Jewish Israelis consider US President Barack Obama to be pro-Israel.

The White House declined to comment on the specifics of the poll. But National Security Council spokesman Mike Hammer told the Jerusalem Post: “We remain committed to peace and security for Israel.”

Hammer recalled the line from Obama's recent speech in Cairo in which he said, “America's strong bonds with Israel are well known. This bond is unbreakable,” one of several recent reiterations of strong US support for Israel.

A new Jerusalem Post-sponsored Smith Research poll had also found that one out of every two Israelis consider the policies of Obama's administration more pro-Palestinian than pro-Israeli, while less than four in 10 said the policies were neutral. 

The views were in stark contrast to the last poll published on May 17, on the eve of the meeting between Netanyahu and Obama at the White House.

The recent views expressed by Israelis follow Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu's speech in support of a demilitarised Palestinian state.

However, Ira Forman of the National Jewish Democratic Council also emphasized that Obama has repeatedly affirmed the US-Israel special relationship and that he "is a great friend to Israel."

“I have no doubt that Israelis will remember Barack Obama and his presidency as one that was tremendously favorable to Israel when all is said and done," he said.

Matt Dorf, who did Jewish outreach for the Democratic National Committee during the presidential campaign, was more blunt when it came to the survey results.

"I don't trust the poll," he said, calling the Post a newspaper that has "not been friendly toward Obama," he said.