Invasion will cost more than one trillion on top of Israeli damages from surprise Gaza attack
ALBAWABA – Troops are amassing near the borderline with the densely populated enclave, standing on the brink of genocide, after the surprise Gaza attack killed hundreds of Israeli soldiers and cost the occupation economy $24.4 billion in damages within just seven days.
The occupation has called on hundreds of thousands of reserves.
On top of the tens of thousands already in the field, getting ready to invade Gaza, it is estimated that this genocide the Israelis are prepping for could cost them more than a trillion dollars, just going in.
According to Times of Israel, at least 286 occupation soldiers were killed in the attack, launched by the Palestinian resistance in Gaza, Hamas.
The cost of equipping an Israeli soldier is estimated at $12.5 million, adjusted for inflation from 2017.
Israeli soldiers stand at a checkpoint near the border with the Gaza Strip in Sderot on October 12, 2023. (Photo by YURI CORTEZ / AFP)
In total, the occupation has incurred more than $3.57 billion in damages from the loss of infantry equipment and personnel alone, since the surprise Gaza attack began on Saturday.
The Tel Aviv stock market reportedly lost $20 billion by the end of business Sunday, AlJazeera reported, on top of $856.66 million, at least, in combined damages from destroyed and seized machinery.
Miscellaneous Israeli damages from surprise Gaza attack
In just two days, the Israeli Iron Dome system had launched a minimum of 8,800 interceptors to take down 4,000, based on median precision figures from data disclosed by specialists to various news agencies in previous years.
During the surprise Gaza attack, rockets are fired from Gaza City towards Israeli-occupied territories on October 7, 2023. (Photo by MAHMUD HAMS / AFP)
On the other side, a minimum of 5,000 rockets and projectiles were launched by the Hamas’s military wing, the Al-Qassam Brigades, Saturday through Sunday.
Since then, more than a thousand more rockets and projectiles were fired from Gaza and southern Lebanon, according to AlJazeera, at Israeli targets within the occupied Palestinian territories.
At $61,000 apiece and 2.2 dome interceptors per rocket from Gaza, interception alone cost the Israelis no less than $644.16 million dollars in the first two to three days. In addition to $17.5 million in damages from the destruction of five Israeli Merkava IV tanks, considering it costs $3.5 million apiece to be produced for the Israeli army.
In terms market value, there is no telling the actual fair market value of the Israeli damages from the surprise Gaza attack in terms of Merkavas. The Israeli producers do not broadcast the price of the Merkava IV, and from various reports, unit prices vary according to specifications and requirements.
Additionally, Israeli occupation authorities just admitted to the loss of at least one Israeli AH-64E Apache helicopter, which is estimated at a cost of $35-50 million apiece. And The Soldiers Project organization places it at a minimum of $52 million, sans equipment and armaments.
Adjusted for inflation, the US Department of Defense’ unit cost estimate of $35 million, as reported in 2014, is equivalent to $45.5 million in 2023.
During the surprise Gaza attack, Palestinians take control of an Israeli tank after crossing the border fence from Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip on October 7, 2023. (Photo by SAID KHATIB / AFP)
Notably, operating one such Apache helicopter costs more than $5,000 per hour, according to Popular Mechanics, not counting armaments and weapons.
In 2018, India paid $150 million apiece for six fully equipped and armed AH-64E Apache, the National Herald reported.
Costs of invasion on top of billions in Israeli damages from surprise Gaza attack
In 2014, when Israeli occupation forces invaded Gaza last, it cost the Israeli economy around 1.0 percent of its Gross Domestic Product (GDP), at around $3.1 billion, according to a Foreign Policy report.
This time, however, it may cost the Israelis all of the soon-to-be ramped-up American aid package, at around 5-10 percent of their GDP, the FP report confirmed. Especially if the onslaught on Gaza carries on for months, as senior Israeli government officials have repeatedly warned.
Following the surprise Gaza attack, an Israeli army Merkava battle tank moves in a convoy along the border with the Gaza on October 13, 2023. (Photo by Menahem KAHANA / AFP)
Notably, Israeli GDP in 2021 was estimated at $419 billion, and 5-10 percent of that is $20.95 billion to $41.9 billion, depending on US aid and the fact that Israeli war expenditure is not restrained by sanctions as is the case for Russia, for instance.
Thanks to that, there is no solid cap on Israeli war expenditure, at least not at this time, the Foreign Policy report said.
So far, occupation authorities have called in more than 300 thousand Israeli soldiers, plus more than 30 thousand already deployed around the Gaza enclave, totalling some 330 thousand troops.
At a cost of $12.5 million apiece just to equip each one of these soldiers, assuming only a quarter are to be equipped, that is a staggering $1.03 trillion, just to equip a fraction of the mobilized forces.
