Poll shows that most Israelis, Palestinians still seek peace

An Israeli police sapper carries part of a rocket which landed in a yard of a house in the city of Sderot, southern Israel, Sunday, Aug. 21, 2016. Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip fired a rocket into southern Israel on Sunday, prompting the Israeli military to respond with airstrikes and tank fire on targets inside Gaza. No injuries were reported on either side. (AP Photo/Tsafrir Abayov) (The Associated Press)

FILE -- In this July 21, 2016 file photo, France's President Francois Hollande, right, greets Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, prior to a meeting at the Elysee Palace, in Paris. A new poll of Israelis and Palestinians released on Monday, Aug. 22, 2016, found that a slim majority on both sides still favor a peace settlement establishing a Palestinian state alongside Israel, despite years of conflict and deadlock in negotiations. The results of the joint poll may provide some small signs of encouragement when peace prospects appear bleak. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus, File) (The Associated Press)

In this Sunday, Oct. 11, 2015 file photo, a Palestinian woman walks by Jewish child as he lights candles where a stabbing attack took place last week in Jerusalem's Old City. A new poll of Israelis and Palestinians released on Monday, Aug. 22, 2016, found that a slim majority on both sides still favor a peace settlement establishing a Palestinian state alongside Israel, despite years of conflict and deadlock in negotiations. The results of the joint poll may provide some small signs of encouragement when peace prospects appear bleak. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty, File) (The Associated Press)

A new poll of Israelis and Palestinians has found that a small majority on both sides still favor a peace settlement establishing a Palestinian state alongside Israel, despite years of conflict and deadlocked negotiations.

The results of the joint poll may provide signs of encouragement when peace prospects appear bleak. The last round of negotiations broke down two years ago, and a resumption of talks seems unlikely.

Israeli political scientist Tamar Hermann conducted the survey with Palestinian pollster Khalil Shikaki. Hermann says there's still some basis for optimism "with the right leadership."

The poll released Monday found 51 percent of Palestinians and 59 percent of Israelis still support a two-state solution. The poll surveyed some 1,200 people on each side and had a margin of error of 3 percentage points.