Official White House Photo by Daniel Torok via White House Flickr
Article by Dana El Kurd arguing that US decline in Arab public opinion is not recent backlash but based on decades-long crisis of legitimacy, drawing on the 2025 Arab Opinion Index from the Arab Center for Research and Policy Studies. The paper covers a steady trajectory of public disillusionment with the US predating the Iran war and Gaza genocide, key findings including single-digit favorability of the US as a mediator in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and over three-fourths of respondents holding a negative view of US policy toward Palestine, and a discussion of the implications of this polling. El Kurd argues that Western interest in the Arab world has continuously prioritized strategic interest over respect for liberal freedoms, and that the path to restoring rules-based order will require multi-lateral efforts and a serious acknowledgement of the US’ ongoing injustices. This source is valuable for research on Arab public opinion, US foreign policy, and US standing in the Middle East.
