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Lebanon's PM: Cost of Israeli Wars May Top USD27B
(MENAFN) Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam said Tuesday that the economic toll of Israel's wars on Lebanon since 2023 could surpass $27 billion, warning that reconstruction is far beyond what the state can manage on its own and will require Arab and international backing.
“We must also be frank with the Lebanese people: the scale of destruction is far greater than the state's capacity,” Salam told parliament during a general debate on government policy.
“Therefore, reconstruction and recovery require, alongside state resources, Arab and international support and major external funding,” he added.
Salam tied the prospect of securing that funding directly to restoring institutional trust and pushing through reforms. “There can be no sustainable reconstruction without funding, no funding without trust, and no trust without a capable state. Reaching a capable state, of course, requires reform,” he said.
Turning to Israel's military campaign against Lebanon, Salam insisted Beirut bore no responsibility for triggering the fighting that engulfed the country last March. “We were not even asked for our opinion about entering it. It was imposed on us at a time when the deep wounds of the 2023-2024 war had not yet healed,” he said.
Citing World Bank figures, Salam said the first war, which began Oct. 8, 2023, cost an estimated $14 billion in total — roughly $7.2 billion in physical damage and about $6.8 billion in economic losses tied to disrupted business activity and falling production and revenues.
As for the more recent Israeli offensive, launched last March, Salam said the World Bank puts its direct cost so far at between $3 billion and $4 billion.
“Therefore, the two wars together have certainly cost Lebanon more than $20 billion, and their total cost may exceed $27 billion once the cost of the 2026 war is fully calculated,” Salam said. “But these figures do not fully reflect the real cost,” he added.
The prime minister noted that these estimates leave out several less visible but significant costs — including brain drain, lost investment, damage to the education sector, falling land and asset values, and the delayed recovery from Lebanon's financial crisis, which has dragged on since 2019.
He added that the figures also exclude the broader economic fallout beyond direct physical destruction, which preliminary estimates place between $4 billion and $5 billion.
Lebanon has endured two devastating assaults since October 2023, leaving widespread destruction, severe damage to infrastructure and housing, and mounting economic losses in their wake.
On June 26, Beirut and Tel Aviv signed a US-brokered framework agreement in Washington outlining a phased Israeli withdrawal from Lebanese territory, paired with the deployment of the Lebanese army into areas vacated by Israeli forces.
Despite that agreement, Israel has continued launching attacks on southern Lebanon and still occupies parts of the south — some held for decades, others seized during more recent wars and military operations.
“We must also be frank with the Lebanese people: the scale of destruction is far greater than the state's capacity,” Salam told parliament during a general debate on government policy.
“Therefore, reconstruction and recovery require, alongside state resources, Arab and international support and major external funding,” he added.
Salam tied the prospect of securing that funding directly to restoring institutional trust and pushing through reforms. “There can be no sustainable reconstruction without funding, no funding without trust, and no trust without a capable state. Reaching a capable state, of course, requires reform,” he said.
Turning to Israel's military campaign against Lebanon, Salam insisted Beirut bore no responsibility for triggering the fighting that engulfed the country last March. “We were not even asked for our opinion about entering it. It was imposed on us at a time when the deep wounds of the 2023-2024 war had not yet healed,” he said.
Citing World Bank figures, Salam said the first war, which began Oct. 8, 2023, cost an estimated $14 billion in total — roughly $7.2 billion in physical damage and about $6.8 billion in economic losses tied to disrupted business activity and falling production and revenues.
As for the more recent Israeli offensive, launched last March, Salam said the World Bank puts its direct cost so far at between $3 billion and $4 billion.
“Therefore, the two wars together have certainly cost Lebanon more than $20 billion, and their total cost may exceed $27 billion once the cost of the 2026 war is fully calculated,” Salam said. “But these figures do not fully reflect the real cost,” he added.
The prime minister noted that these estimates leave out several less visible but significant costs — including brain drain, lost investment, damage to the education sector, falling land and asset values, and the delayed recovery from Lebanon's financial crisis, which has dragged on since 2019.
He added that the figures also exclude the broader economic fallout beyond direct physical destruction, which preliminary estimates place between $4 billion and $5 billion.
Lebanon has endured two devastating assaults since October 2023, leaving widespread destruction, severe damage to infrastructure and housing, and mounting economic losses in their wake.
On June 26, Beirut and Tel Aviv signed a US-brokered framework agreement in Washington outlining a phased Israeli withdrawal from Lebanese territory, paired with the deployment of the Lebanese army into areas vacated by Israeli forces.
Despite that agreement, Israel has continued launching attacks on southern Lebanon and still occupies parts of the south — some held for decades, others seized during more recent wars and military operations.
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