The ongoing fight between Hamas and Israel started on October 7 in the form of the Gaza war. This fight led to the boycott of many food points from Malaysian Muslims. It includes Starbucks, Pizza Hut, and other franchises. Critics also requested to permanently shut down the shops that support the United States. This is because the United States is in the favor of Israel. This nation brought too much disaster in Gaza and took the lives of many innocents. Meanwhile, opinions in the US regarding the conflict are sharply divided. The changing public sentiment in the US presents Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim with an opportunity to reconsider Kuala Lumpur’s approach to the US.
The protest in Malaysia is the clear sign that this Muslim community stands with Palestine and strongly opposes the Israel groups. These actions are similar to the local actions. It is when Muslim community protested a store that purchased and sold offensive stocks. Now, Malaysians are against a group trying to take over Malaysia Airport Holdings Bhd. The reason behind it is the BlackRock company. It is a US based company. And the US is the nation that strongly assists Israel. Due to this reason many Malaysian groups requested their government to stop such a deal.
Anwar Ibrahim, Malaysian Prime Minister, has told American companies that our nation welcomes American investment. Many deals have been successful such as the Tesla deal. Also the tech companies of both nations are doing a good job together. But now Anwar is careful to make ties with America. The reason behind this, because in Malaysia the majority is the Muslim community. And Malaysian Muslims want to permanently boycott the American companies that support Israel.
Right-wings groups pressurize the Anwer’s government to show strong support for the Palestinian cause. In order to fulfill his commitment, the Malaysian president has publicly backed Hamas. He does not think that this action is strongly opposed by the United States. This stance, popular among Malaysians, makes it difficult for his administration to tackle economically risky consumer boycotts.
Furthermore, Anwar’s government has two options in order to use this situation. First the Israel-Gaza war Provides a chance to Malaysians to represent the complicated relationship with the United State. There are many US companies that support Israel. Many people in America also opposed Israel and many of them stood with Israel. So, there is a growing division in American public opinion.
From October 2023 to May 2024, at least eight US State Department officials resigned, criticizing the US role in Gaza. Many important personalities in the United State strongly opposed the Israel action. Also some politicians of this nation stand against the Israeli Prime Minister, Netanyahu. One of the prominent names that show criticism of the Israeli actions is Jewish Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer. This opposition indicates that different people have different views in the United States.
There is a clear change in the American public opinions about Israel’s military actions. In November 2023, many Americans supported Israel but in March 2024 only 36% of Americans approved. The divide between political parties is clear: 64% of Republicans supported it, while only 18% of Democrats did. This huge difference is important especially in the election year with the United State president, Joe Biden. He is the one who supports Israel along with Donald Trump. Donald Trump also show favoritism to Israel but also has made anti-Muslim comments.
Recent surveys have been done that highlights the different opinions regarding the Israel-Hamas war. These opinions depend upon the age, and religion difference. Pew data from mid-February 2024 highlight these differences in views on Hamas’ attacks, Israel’s actions, and opinions about the Palestinian and Israeli people and leaders.
This data is the clear question mark for those who support Israel. Furthermore, this difference also impacts the US-Malaysian relationship. If the Democrats win the upcoming elections, Malaysia might find it easier to build connections, even though Biden’s policies are supportive of Israel. Republicans generally show more support for the Israeli government and are less sympathetic to Palestinians. For example, 59% of Republicans think Israel’s response to Hamas was acceptable, compared to only 22% of Democrats.
Younger Americans, in particular, are more critical of Israel’s actions and tend to sympathize more with Palestinians. For instance, only 21% of people aged 18-29 find Israel’s response in Gaza acceptable, while 53% of those 65 and older support it.
