“Damage to Israel in war with Iran was twice that of the Gaza war”

According to the Al-Ahed news outlet, the Zionist media outlet Calcalist, quoting Amir Dahan, head of the Compensation Fund of the Israeli Tax Authority, wrote: “We are dealing with 50,000 claims for compensation resulting from Iran’s attacks on the occupied territories.”

He added: “In the Gaza war, we paid out 2.5 billion shekels in damages. In the war against Iran, the losses have reached 4.5 billion shekels, and this figure will likely rise to 5 billion. This means that in just one week, the damage has been double that of the Gaza war.”

Dahan continued: “This level of damage is evident in the number of completely destroyed buildings. Since October 7, 2023, only one building in Haifa was destroyed. But now, more than 25 buildings have been demolished.”

He also acknowledged limitations of the Compensation Fund, especially in dispatching assessment teams, stating: “Currently, we have 130 teams, each consisting of a representative from the Tax Authority and a damage assessor. However, the number of assessors is limited, as many are not available.”

Regarding the fund's available budget, Dahan said: “The fund previously had over 9 billion shekels. We estimate that current damages amount to 4.5 to 5 billion shekels, but claims related to the Gaza war are still pending.”

He added: “There are already 6 billion shekels’ worth of claims on the table, and not all have been submitted yet. Major factories in the north (of the occupied territories) have not even been assessed. We are approaching the depletion of the fund’s reserves.”