Photo: depositphotos.
Since the beginning of September 2024, the war in northern Israel has cost the state about 25 billion shekels. These significant costs are due, in particular, to the high cost of weapons used in the elimination of Hezbollah’s secretary general. However, despite the growing financial needs, there are currently no sources to cover these costs. This was reported by the Israeli media outlet Ynet.
Costs of military operations in Lebanon and Gaza
According to Ynet, the total cost of military operations in Lebanon, including the cost of the war in the Gaza Strip, over the past 50 days has amounted to about NIS 25 billion. Significant expenditures require an urgent increase in the state budget immediately after the holidays.
The significant increase in expenditures is due to the mobilisation of tens of thousands of reservists and the deployment of several divisions to Lebanon – the first time since the start of the war in October last year. There has also been a sharp increase in the use of expensive ammunition and interception systems due to the growing number of rockets and drones attacking Israeli territory.
Cost of ammunition
The cost of the ammunition used in Lebanon was extremely high. An IDF spokesperson confirmed that 25 million shekels were spent on ammunition alone to eliminate Hassan Nasrallah. A similar operation against Hashem Safi al-Din cost another 20 million shekels. In total, the cost of a day’s fighting for the IDF recently exceeded 500 million shekels.
Financial challenges and budgetary changes
In addition, the cost of the fighting in Gaza has also increased due to the deployment of new military forces and the expansion of the war zone. A senior official at the Ministry of Finance said that with no sources in the budget to finance the rising costs, the delay in the transfer of some NIS 18 billion in US aid only exacerbates the situation. In this regard, the government is expected to revise the 2024 budget for the third time after the holidays.
