Nearly 10,000 Buildings Destroyed By Hezbollah In Israel's North: Report
More than 9,000 buildings and 7,000 vehicles have been damaged or destroyed by Hezbollah operations against the Israeli north since the start of the war, Yedioth Ahronoth reported on Tuesday – highlighting the "unimaginable" losses ahead of a potential ceasefire deal with Lebanon.
"In the conflict line settlements, there is almost no building that does not require renovation - or demolition and rebuilding," said the Israeli newspaper’s electronic site Ynet.
According to property tax data obtained by Ynet, "a disturbing partial image emerges that indicates destruction and damage to approximately 9,000 buildings and over 7,000 vehicles that were damaged mainly by Hezbollah fire."
Ynet adds that "about NIS 140 million [$38,368,316] has been paid to compensate for the damages."
The data indicates that "there are many injuries in the north that have not yet been reported, because the tenants are being evacuated or because the injuries are in areas that cannot be entered according to the army's instructions."
The report highlights that the northern settlements and cities of Kiryat Shmona, Manara, Shtula, Zarit, Nahariya, and Shlomi sustained the heaviest damage throughout the war. Most of the damage was to residential buildings. The Hebrew outlet says the destruction has not been properly documented and is "shrouded in a heavy fog."
In Kiryat Shmona, the losses are "unimaginable." Its Mayor, Avichai Stern, reported that every home in Kiryat Shmona needs renovation, which will take months. Public buildings have also been damaged, and renovation of schools alone requires around four months.
Stern states that there is no government plan in place to receive the settlers back north. He says they will decide to leave again once they see the reality they returned to. "When they see where they returned and to what reality they returned – the second wave of departure will be wider."
"Apart from a budget framework of NIS 15 billion [$4,119,765,000] for all the settlements in the north, there is no plan approved by the government. Not security, not economic, not social, and not any response to resilience, and the communities that fell apart and the infrastructures that were destroyed," he added.
https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/nearly-10000-buildings-destroyed-hezbollah-israels-north-report