Syrians See Israel as Greatest Regional Threat in Arab Opinion Survey

Most Syrians view Israel as the greatest threat to the security of their country and the region, with Iran a distant second, according to a new nationwide survey. The poll, conducted by the Doha-based Arab Center for Research and Policy Studies and the Arab Center for Contemporary Syria Studies, published its results on Monday.

The Arab Opinion Index for Syria 2026 found that 61 percent of respondents named Israel as the main threat to Syria. Iran was named by 20 percent, Turkiye by 6 percent and the United States by 5 percent. Asked about the Arab world as a whole, 58 percent named Israel as the main threat, unchanged from last year. The share naming Iran as the main regional threat doubled from 12 percent in 2025 to 24 percent.

The survey also measured views of regional stability. Some 97 percent of respondents said Israel threatens the security and stability of the Middle East, up from 78 percent a year earlier, while the share saying the same about Iran rose from 74 percent to 93 percent. Al Jazeera reported that Israel has seized territory in southern Syria since the fall of Bashar al-Assad in December 2024. About 96 percent of respondents said Israel is working to destabilise Syria, and 86 percent said it is driving separatist tendencies.

Almost 80 percent of respondents opposed recognising Israel, up from 74 percent in 2025, and 74 percent opposed any agreement that does not return the occupied Golan Heights. Opinion was divided on direct talks between Syrian and Israeli officials: 41 percent said such talks serve Syria’s interests, and 49 percent said they do not.

Al Jazeera interviewed residents on the streets of Damascus ahead of the Israeli elections last month. Jihad el-Hamwi said Israel’s approach to Syria was unaffected by the change of government. “In my opinion, Israeli policy does not change when the ruler changes, because it is an expansionist policy,” he said. “Just as it has expanded into Syria, Palestine, Lebanon and other countries, its aim is expansion, not a change of ruler.” Another resident told Al Jazeera, “The Israeli elections only ever bring in a ruler who is unjust, who does not even recognise the rights of his neighbours, and who has absolutely no connection to international norms.”

On the US-Israel war on Iran, 80 percent of survey respondents said Iranian missile strikes on Israel were justified. Some 74 percent said Iranian strikes on Arab countries, other than US military bases, were not justified, and three-quarters said Washington had waged the war on Israel’s behalf.

The survey also points to growing support for pluralism. Seventy-six percent agreed that democracy, despite its problems, is better than other systems, up 16 percentage points from last year. Three-quarters said a democratic system with political pluralism and a separation of powers was best for Syria, and no alternative, including rule by Islamic law without elections, drew more than 9 percent. About 87 percent said no one should question the patriotism of people who oppose government policy, a 20-point increase. Views of the country’s direction were mixed: half said Syria was heading the right way, citing the end of the former government, the release of detainees and the lifting of sanctions, while 35 percent disagreed.

The survey comes nearly two years after al-Assad was toppled in an offensive led by opposition fighters, ending more than five decades of his family’s rule.

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