Worlds Apart: British Muslim Attitudes on the Iran Conflict

March 17, 2026

A new report by Policy Exchange, Worlds Apart: British Muslim Attitudes on the Iran Conflict, reveals that recent developments in the Middle East are being viewed differently by Muslims in the UK when compared with the wider public.

British Polling Council (BPC) member JL Partners polled a nationally representative UK sample of 2,223 adults, as well as an additional sample of 1,031 Muslims in the UK. Respondents were asked about their views on the military strikes in Iran, the role of UK foreign policy, and their attitudes towards prominent countries in current-day international geopolitics. The fieldwork dates for the survey were 2 – 13 March 2026, with respondents being recruited using an online panel.

While 14% of the general population believed that Iran was not a significant threat before the US-Israel airstrikes, this rises to 45% for British Muslims. Compared to the general population, British Muslims are more likely to cite gaining control of oil supplies as a motive behind the military action against Iran (40% / 15%) and far more likely to consider the strikes as ‘definitively wrong’ (50% / 17%). There is a profound divergence in how events and developments are being interpreted.

Beyond the Iran conflict, the survey found that British Muslims also have a broadly different view of the world order and the international system. While 8% of people in the UK view Iran favourably, this rises to nearly two in five people – 39% – among British Muslims. Muslims in the UK have much warmer attitudes towards Iran than towards the United States and Israel, as well as Saudi Arabia. It is worth noting that US is far from popular with the wider population, with only 23% having a favourable view of the country (and 40% having an unfavourable view).

Looking further afield, British Muslims are dramatically less hostile towards both China and Russia when compared with the general public. While 8% of the wider population have a favourable view of Russia, this rises to 29% for British Muslims. Fifteen per cent of the general population have a favourable view of China, rising to 38% for British Muslims. This exposes a certain British Muslim scepticism of Western geopolitics, holding relatively favourable views towards countries which could be perceived as having hostile anti-West regimes. British Muslims are younger, on average, than the UK general population. While younger generations are traditionally linked to stronger forms of disillusionment with Western geopolitics, hostility towards the US and Israel – as well as support for Iran – is significantly greater among UK Muslims of all ages than the youngest group of the wider public in the analysis (18–25-year-olds).

There is considerable public interest in the Iran conflict. Most of the British public is following events closely, with nearly two-thirds of respondents reporting this – which is very high for a foreign policy issue and the fact that the UK has not been directly involved in the strikes on Iran. British Muslims are even more engaged, with 81% saying they are following the Iran conflict closely. Compared to the wider public, the relatively youthful British Muslim population are more likely to digest information and material on the conflict from channels such as Qatar-headquartered Al Jazeera, social media platforms such as TikTok and Instagram, and podcasts/YouTube commentators.

The launch of this research note was covered by: