We are pleased to share a new report examining Czech public and political elite attitudes toward Israel, Czech-Israeli relations, and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in the context of the October 7 attacks and the subsequent war in Gaza. The project is a collaboration between the Herzl Center for Israel Studies and the Peace Research Center Prague.

The public opinion surveys were conducted in January 2023 and January 2024 in cooperation with IPSOS on representative samples of the Czech population (1,017 respondents in 2023 and 1,010 respondents in 2024). In addition, a unique survey among members of the Czech Parliament was conducted at the turn of 2022–2023.

The findings confirm that Czech society remains comparatively pro-Israeli, although many respondents continue to express uncertainty or lack of opinion on more complex foreign policy questions. Following October 7, interest in news about Israel significantly increased, and Czechs were generally more sympathetic toward Israel than toward the Palestinian side. Around two-fifths of respondents agreed with Israeli demands and actions during the conflict, while support for the Palestinian side remained low.

The survey also shows that Czechs generally evaluate Czech-Israeli relations positively, with more favorable perceptions in 2024 than in the previous year. At the same time, support for moving the Czech embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem remains limited, and a substantial share of respondents continue to favor a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Support for recognizing Palestine as an independent state also slightly increased between 2023 and 2024.

One of the most striking findings is the gap between Czech political elites and the broader public. Czech MPs and senators hold substantially more pro-Israeli positions than the average Czech citizen, particularly regarding responsibility for the conflict, bilateral relations, and the possible relocation of the Czech embassy to Jerusalem.

You can download the report (in Czech only) here.