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Shafaq News- Beirut
Lebanon’s Economy and Trade Minister Amer Bisat said on Thursday that the cost of Israel’s war on Lebanon, which has killed more than 4,000 people, could exceed $8 billion, with final damage assessments still underway.
Speaking to Al Arabiya, Bisat estimated that the conflict has already cost the Lebanese economy about $2 billion since March, equivalent to roughly 7% of gross domestic product, and expected the overall losses to match or exceed those recorded during the 2024 war.
The assessment covers three main areas: lost economic activity, material damage, and inflationary pressures. Factory closures, damage to agricultural land, job losses, and a sharp downturn in tourism all contributed to the economic toll, while extensive destruction affected around 70 towns and villages in southern Lebanon, as well as Beirut’s southern suburbs and the Beqaa Valley. Field and aerial surveys remain underway in coordination with the National Council for Scientific Research (CNRS), the World Bank, and the United Nations, to finalize the damage estimates.
Consumer prices have also risen by about 20% since the beginning of the year because of higher fuel, transportation, and shipping costs, while household consumption has fallen by between 20% and 25%.
To finance reconstruction, the government is relying on four main sources: private sector contributions, remittances from the Lebanese diaspora, humanitarian response plans, and the reallocation of existing international loans. Authorities have already launched two emergency response plans worth a combined $600 million, securing about $200 million so far, while working with the World Bank to redirect another $600 million in previously approved loans toward urgent post-war priorities.
Bisat acknowledged that Arab financial support has become more cautious than in previous years because several countries in the region have also been affected by the recent conflict, but stressed that efforts to secure additional assistance are continuing. Future Arab and international reconstruction aid, he added, will depend on several conditions, foremost among them extending the Lebanese state’s authority across the country.
Read more: South Lebanon framework: What we know so far
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