Tel Aviv  - Most Israelis (52 per cent) are against giving up the occupied-Golan Heights in return for peace agreement with Syria, a poll published Thursday by an Israeli newspaper said.

Some 48 per cent approved giving up either part, or all of the Golan Heights, said the Yediot Ahronot poll.

The majority opposed to any withdrawal was much smaller than that of an opinion poll published by Israel's Channel 2 television Wednesday night. That poll said as many as 70 per cent of Israelis opposed pulling out of the Golan Heights, against only 22 per cent in favour, while the rest was unsure.

The questions slightly differed, however. The Channel 2 poll asked those polled if they were willing to give up the Golan "in the framework of a peace agreement," while the Yediot Ahronot poll question was more detailed and asked if they were willing to make concessions on the Golan "in return for a full peace agreement with Syria, which includes diplomatic relations and appropriate security arrangements."

Israelis were sceptical about Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's motivation behind reviving peace talks with Syria for the first time in eight years.

According to the Yediot poll, 49 per cent of Israelis believed Olmert revived the talks to divert attention from a police investigation against him, while the Channel 2 poll said as many as 57 per cent his decision had to do with the police investigation.

The Yediot Ahronot poll questioned a sample of 500 adult Israelis and had a margin of error of 4.5 per cent. The Channel 2 poll questioned 550 adult Israelis and gave no margin of error. (dpa)