Mideast Peace Effort Losing Some Support, Study Finds : U.S. Jews Voice More Distrust of Arab Intentions

WASHINGTON —  A new survey of American Jewish attitudes shows continued high--but eroding--support for the Middle East peace process, along with a growing distrust of long-term Arab intentions toward Israel.

The survey by the American Jewish Committee was released Tuesday, one day before the second anniversary of the Sept. 13, 1993, White House handshake between Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and Palestine Liberation Organization Chairman Yasser Arafat.

A survey by the group taken soon after that event showed 84% of American Jews to be supportive of the peace process.

But after two years of missed deadlines and continued violence, American Jewish support has dropped to 68%. An additional 17% said they are “not sure” whether they support the process.

Although lacking statistical data, spokesmen for the American Muslim and Arab American communities said similar misgivings toward the ongoing negotiations between Israel and the PLO are evident in their communities.

“Nobody is satisfied with how it has gone,” said Abdurahman Alamoudi, executive director of the American Muslim Council. “The process is stalemated and Muslims see that other than the lifting of a curfew in Gaza and Jericho, there have been no gains for the Palestinian people economically or in terms of their real power.”

“This peace process is giving peace a bad name,” said James A. Zogby, president of the Arab American Institute in Washington. “It’s disturbing that trust has not replaced mistrust.”

David A. Harris, American Jewish Committee executive director, said a drop in support was inevitable after the “euphoria” generated by the White House ceremony. However, he called the 16-point decline in Jewish support “a marked slippage.”

Moreover, he noted that distrust of Arab intentions has climbed.

Seventy-one percent of those surveyed said the PLO--Israel’s primary negotiating partner--cannot be relied upon to honor its agreements and refrain from attacks against Israelis. That is up from 42% two years ago.

Fifty-six percent said the goal of the Arabs--with the exception of Jordan--is not the return of occupied territory, “but rather the destruction of Israel.”

Two years ago, 42% agreed with that statement.

David Singer, research director of American Jewish Committee, a civil rights and pro-Israel group, said Jews’ continued support for ongoing negotiations despite their distrust was more an acknowledgment of the right of Israel’s democratically elected government to decide that nation’s future than anything else.

Sixty-two percent of those polled said they would support any decision by an elected Israeli government regarding the establishment of a Palestinian state, even though only 46% said they personally supported the establishment of such a state.

Other survey results:

* Sixty-two percent opposed any Israeli compromise on its position that Jerusalem should remain united under its authority. That figure is unchanged since 1993. Both Israel and the Palestinians claim Jerusalem as their capital, and the city’s future is one of the most contentious issues of the peace process.

* Only 6% said most of the West Bank should be turned over to Palestinian control, down from 10% two years ago. Thirty-six percent said “some” of the West Bank should be surrendered, as opposed to 44% in 1993.

* Twenty-three percent said none of the West Bank should be relinquished, up from 15% in 1993.

Orthodox Jews--who according to the survey were more likely to visit Israel and have relatives there--tended to be more skeptical of the peace process than any other Jews.

Just 31% of Orthodox Jews surveyed supported the process. In contrast, 77% of the Reform Jews surveyed said they still backed the process.

The telephone survey sampled the opinions of 1,000 self-identified Jews. The survey’s margin of error is plus or minus 3%.