Falcon powers – The Israeli Ministry of Defense requested estimates of the cost that Israel would incur from restoring Israeli military rule in the Gaza Strip the day after the war, as tensions increase between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the Israeli military leadership over this issue.
The document, which was prepared at the request of the Israeli Ministry of Defense to explore alternative options to the rule of Hamas in the Palestinian territory, sought to track the budgetary implications for Israel in the event of establishing an Israeli military administration in the Gaza Strip, according to the newspaper “Yedioth Ahronoth,” which said it obtained the document.
The document estimated that the restoration of Israeli military rule in the Gaza Strip would cost Israel around 20 billion shekels (about $5.5 billion) annually, solely in terms of operating and management costs, while the cost of building a water desalination plant for sanitation, for example, is estimated at around 150 million shekels (about $41 million), excluding ongoing operating costs.
The document also estimated that the Israeli military rule in Gaza would require about 400 personnel, in addition to the continued presence of 5 Israeli army brigades in Gaza – 4 offensive and 1 defensive, which would require Israel to reduce the number of its forces on the northern front (the Lebanese border) and in the West Bank, as well as a significant increase in the scope of reserves allocated for operational manpower.
