Nadine Osman
Israel has placed last in the Nation Brands Index (NBI) for the second consecutive year, according to figures released on January 7 by BrandIL, a private research firm.
The result marks Israel’s lowest position in the index in almost two decades.
The NBI, developed by policy adviser Simon Anholt, measures countries’ global reputations across six categories: tourism, people, culture, immigration and investment, exports, and governance.
Japan, Germany, Canada, Italy, Switzerland and Britain ranked among the highest-performing nations. Israel, however, placed below countries including India, Kenya, Russia, Ukraine and Namibia.
The Palestinian Authority, which is not internationally recognised as a sovereign state, ranked lower than Israel.
The survey, conducted between August and September 2025, shows Israel’s overall score fell by 6.1 per cent compared with the previous year.
Israel also ranked lowest for perceptions of exports and consumer products, reflecting growing international reluctance to purchase goods and services associated with the country.
According to the report, global sentiment towards Israel has hardened significantly between 2024 and 2025. Crucially, negative perceptions now extend beyond criticism of the Israeli government to attitudes towards Israeli citizens themselves, a shift linked directly to the war on Gaza.
Israeli daily Yedioth Ahronoth reported that Israelis are increasingly viewed abroad as persona non grata. Since October 2023, Israeli forces have killed more than 72,000 Palestinians in Gaza and the occupied West Bank. The report comes amid mounting evidence of a sharp decline in Israel’s global standing. Israeli media have noted that increasing numbers of Gen Z respondents now describe Israel as “illegitimate” and “colonial”.
Products labelled “Made in Israel” have also been directly affected, as international boycott campaigns continue to gain momentum.
Although the Nation Brands Index does not measure consumer behaviour directly, BrandIL warned of broader economic consequences, including declining global trust, reduced foreign investment, damage to tourism, and long-term harm to Israel’s international reputation.
Israel’s position in global opinion surveys has fallen steeply since October 2023. A YouGov poll conducted between 12 and 26 May found public support for Israel in Europe at its lowest level in 2025, with fewer than one in five respondents in Britain, France, Germany, Denmark, Spain and Italy expressing a favourable view.
In the United States, a Pew Research Center poll published in April found that 53 per cent of Americans now hold an unfavourable opinion of Israel, up from 42 per cent in March 2022, prior to the 7 October 2023 Hamas attack and Israel’s subsequent military campaign in Gaza.
While Democrats remain far more likely than Republicans to view Israel negatively—69 per cent compared with 37 per cent—the proportion of Republicans holding unfavourable views has risen by 10 percentage points since 2022.
Another Pew survey found that majorities in 20 of the 24 countries surveyed between January and April 2025 held negative views of Israel and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Although unfavourable perceptions of Israel have long prevailed in Arab and Muslim-majority countries, the polling highlights a marked increase in disapproval across Europe and East Asia. Support is also declining in Western Europe and among younger generations worldwide.
Feature photo: Smoke billows from the remains of three UNRWA schools and several apartment buildings in Gaza’s al-Shati Refugee Camp, targeted by Israeli forces on September 13. These structures had been serving as shelters for displaced Palestinians, their safe havens reduced to rubble. (Credit: Khames Alrefi/AA)
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