BEIRUIT, Lebanon, Nov. 14 (UPI) — Crisis-ridden Lebanon has suffered physical damage and economic losses estimated at $8.5 billion during more than a year of Hezbollah-Israel clashes-turned-into-war, with the housing sector the hardest hit, the World Bank said Thursday.
In a report assessing the impact of the Hezbollah-Israel conflict on Lebanon’s economy and key sectors from Oct. 8, 2023, to Oct. 27, 2024, the World Bank said that “damages to physical structures alone amount to $3.4 billion and that economic losses have reached $5.1 billion.”
The report said the conflict is estimated to have cut Lebanon’s real gross domestic product growth by at least 6.6% in 2024, compounding five years of “sustained sharp economic contraction that has exceeded 34% of real GDP.”
The Hezbollah-Israel fighting broke out when Lebanon was still suffering from an acute economic and financial crisis — described as among the world’s worst in recent history — that has impoverished most of its population since 2019.
The relentless Israeli air and ground bombardment led to large destruction of villages, property, hospitals and schools in areas around Beirut, as well as southern and eastern Lebanon. Dozens of villages in the southern border area were wiped out.
Some 3,386 people have been killed and 14,417 wounded since October 2023, according to Lebanese Health Ministry counts Thursday.
The World Bank report found that housing has been the hardest hit sector, with “an estimated 99,209 housing units” partially or fully damaged at an estimated $32 billion in damages and losses.
It said that 81% of the damaged apartments and houses are in the Tyre, Nabatiyeh, Saida, Bint Jbeil and Marjayoun districts in southern Lebanon.
It also said displacement of more than 875,000 people, including women, children and refugees “has triggered a humanitarian crisis which is also exacerbating fragility and vulnerability.”
The report, which noted that “monetary poverty” had more than tripled over the past decade, expected the ongoing conflict to “push many more people into poverty.”
Moreover, the World Bank estimated that 166,000 people have lost their jobs, “corresponding to a loss of $168 million in earnings.” The displacement of employees and business owners, who were forced to leave their targeted regions, led to “disruptions to commerce amounting to close to $2 billion.”
Agricultural losses and damages were estimated at about $1.2 billion due to the destruction of crops, livestock and the displacement of farmers.
Losses in the education sector were estimated at $215 million, while the health sector suffered damage valued at $74 million, with losses estimated at $338 million.
The report emphasized that the final cost of damage and losses for Lebanon associated with the conflict is expected to be “significantly higher … as the conflict has continued, and additional sectors are increasingly impacted.”
The World Bank said it will be “activating emergency response plans” for Lebanon to help face the current crisis and support the urgent needs of the population.
