Here are some key aspects of the cost of the conflict that raged intensely two months ago when it was launched Israel An attack on the Iranian-backed Lebanese group, according to a Reuters report.
Toll of dead and wounded
The Lebanese Ministry of Health said that as of November 24, 3,768 people had been killed and at least 15,699 people injured in…Banan Since October 2023. The numbers do not distinguish between Hezbollah fighters and civilians. The majority of the toll occurred after Israel launched its attack in September.
The number of deaths among Hezbollah is not yet clear. The group had announced the killing of about 500 of its fighters in battles up until the moment Israel launched its attack in September, but it has stopped announcing this since then.
The Institute for National Security Studies at Tel Aviv University, which is closely linked to the military establishment, says that the Hezbollah group lost 2,450 individuals in total.
Hezbollah raids killed 45 civilians in northern Israel and the occupied Golan Heights.
The Israeli authorities said that at least 73 Israeli soldiers were killed in northern Israel, the Golan Heights and in battles in southern Lebanon.
Destruction
A World Bank report said that the cost of damage to housing in Lebanon is estimated at $2.8 billion, with more than 99,000 housing units partially or completely destroyed.
The Beirut Cities Laboratory, affiliated with the American University, said that Israeli air strikes demolished at least 262 buildings in the southern suburbs of Beirut alone, a Hezbollah stronghold.
The Israeli army also caused widespread damage to villages and towns in the Bekaa Valley and southern Lebanon, two areas controlled by Hezbollah.
The World Bank report estimated the damage to agriculture at about $124 million and losses of more than $1.1 billion, due to harvest losses resulting from the destruction of crops and livestock and the displacement of farmers.
The Israeli authorities estimate the damage to property in Israel By at least one billion shekels ($273 million), with thousands of homes, farms and businesses damaged or destroyed.
The bulk of the damage in Israel occurred in the areas adjacent to the Lebanese border, which were subjected to missile strikes from Hezbollah.
Israeli authorities say that about 55,000 acres of forests, nature reserves, parks and open lands in northern Israel and the Golan Heights have been burned since the beginning of the war.
Exodus
The International Organization for Migration and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees said that more than 886,000 people were displaced inside Lebanon as of November 18. UNHCR data showed that more than 540,000 people have fled from Lebanon to Syria since the start of the war.
In Israel, about 60,000 people were evacuated from their homes in the north.
Economic impact
In a report issued on November 14, the World Bank provided a preliminary estimate of the damage and losses inflicted on Lebanon at approximately $8.5 billion. Lebanon’s real GDP is expected to contract by about 5.7 percent in 2024, compared to pre-conflict growth estimates of 0.9 percent.
The agricultural sector incurred losses exceeding $1.1 billion during the past twelve months due to the destruction of crops and livestock and the displacement of farmers, especially in the southern regions. The World Bank said that the tourism and hospitality sectors, the main contributors to the Lebanese economy, were the most affected, with losses amounting to $1.1 billion.
In Israel, the conflict with Hezbollah exacerbated the economic impact of the war in the Gaza Strip, putting pressure on public finances
The budget deficit rose to about eight percent of GDP, prompting the three major credit rating agencies to downgrade Israel’s rating this year.
The conflict exacerbated disruptions in supply chains until inflation rose to 3.5 percent, exceeding the central bank’s target range of between one and three percent. As a result, the central bank maintained high interest rates to curb inflation, so mortgage rates remained high and pressures on families increased.
The Israeli economy recovered somewhat in the third quarter from the weak second quarter, growing by about 3.8 percent on an annual basis, according to the government’s initial estimates.
