Majority of Israelis support attack on Iran, polls say

More than half of Israelis would support an attack on Iran even if it was not backed by the United States, according to a poll by the Israel Democracy Institute. 

Fifty-one percent of respondents said they would support a unilateral strike on Iran. 

The results come after Iran and world powers are expected to resume talks aimed at salvaging a 2015 nuclear deal in Vienna on Thursday after a few days of pause and escalating tensions. 

So far, European countries have strongly criticised Tehran's demands during the recent negotiations. 

The US participated indirectly in the ongoing talks because it withdrew from the accord in 2018 under then-President Donald Trump. President Joe Biden has signaled that he wants to rejoin the deal.

In the meeting on Thursday, US and Israeli defense chiefs are expected to discuss possible military exercises that would prepare for a worst-case scenario to destroy Iran's nuclear facilities should talks fail, a senior US official told Reuters news agency.

The US talks with Israeli Defence Minister Benny Gantz follow an October 25 briefing with Pentagon leaders to White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan on the full set of military options available to ensure that Iran would not be able to produce a nuclear weapon, the official said.

According to the survey, fifty-four percent of Israelis believe Iran poses an existential threat, while 25 percent of respondents viewed Iran as a “medium danger”. 

Political ideology also played a role, according to the poll. Two-thirds of self-identifying right-wing respondents agreed that Israel should attack Iran even without US backing. Among center-left respondents, 50 percent dropped such support, while on the left, 37.5 percent agreed with the Israeli strike without US green light.

Iran had started the process of enriching uranium to up to 20 percent purity with one cascade of 166 advanced IR-6 machines at the Fordow plant, the International Atomic Energy Agency said last week.

READ MORE: Can Israel derail the US-Iran nuclear deal talks?

The accord in Vienna in 2015, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, was meant to rein in Iran’s nuclear program in return for loosened economic sanctions.

Following the US decision to withdraw and reimpose sanctions against Iran, Tehran has ramped up its nuclear program again by enriching uranium beyond the thresholds allowed in the agreement.

Iran has also prevented monitors from the UN atomic watchdog from accessing its nuclear facilities, raising concerns about what the country is doing out of view.

Last week, Israel’s spy chief, Mossad director David Barnea, said that the country was prepared to ensure Iran did not have nuclear weapons.

"Iran will not have nuclear weapons - not in the coming years, not ever. That is my promise, that is Mossad's promise," he said.