One of Israel’s major private banks, Hapoalim Bank, has issued a warningthat a war with Hamas would cost Israel billions of dollars, potentiallyleading to budget deficits.
According to Israeli media reports, Hapoalim Bank has estimated theinitial cost of Israel’s military expenditures in a conflict with Hamas at6.8 billion dollars.
The bank acknowledges that it is currently challenging to determine theduration of the conflict, but it estimates that a military situation in thecoming year could result in a 1.5% deficit in the Israeli budget.
The bank’s report includes expenses related to Israel’s call for 300,000reserve soldiers, which would also necessitate them leaving their full-timeemployment, resulting in significant economic losses.
According to the report, this marks the first time since the 1973Arab-Israeli war that Israel has called for such a large number of reservesoldiers.
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In addition to military expenditures, the possibility of substantialexpenses arises from damage to infrastructure, homes, medical care for theinjured, and support for the families of fallen soldiers due to Hamasattacks.
On the other hand, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has expressedconcerns about Israel’s military activities in Palestine and theirpotential impact on the global economy’s uncertain outlook.