The recent missile attack by Iran on Israel caused an estimated 150 billion to 200 billion shekels ($40 million to $53 million) in damage to private property, according to Israel's tax authority. This makes it the most expensive attack since the beginning of the war a year ago.
Some 2,500 claims were submitted in the two weeks following the Oct. 1 attack, more than half for damage to apartments and several businesses near north Tel Aviv.
One of the epicenters was the town of Hod Hasharon, where, according to the insurance claims, over 1,000 homes were damaged.
Another was a commercial and living complex near north Tel Aviv’s coast, where dozens of apartments and a restaurant were hit. The rest of the damage was concentrated in other parts of central Israel, south of Tel Aviv, including an empty school. It’s not clear how much damage was caused by direct hits and how much from falling debris as missiles were intercepted.
Damage to the Israeli Air Force bases of Tel Nof and Nevatim isn’t included in the calculations.
The Israeli Tax Authority said it has paid out 1.5 billion shekels in compensation for damaged properties since Oct. 7, 2023. It estimates that payouts of some 1 billion shekels more are pending, including for damages not yet claimed, mainly in Israel’s North.
Some 60,000 Israelis had left their homes in the northern region over the past year when Israel’s war in Gaza started, and Hezbollah militants based in Lebanon stepped up cross-border strikes in support of Hamas.
Hundreds of thousands of residents have also had to evacuate from south Lebanon as a result of increased fighting between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah over the past month.
Iran launched the Oct. 1 ballistic missile attack in what it said was retaliation for the killing of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah by Israel in Beirut and the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran. Hezbollah and Hamas are both labeled as terrorist organizations by the US and the European Union.
The Oct. 1 strikes were Iran’s second direct attack on Israel, following an initial hit in April that involved 300 drones and 100 ballistic missiles.
At that time, only four or five missiles penetrated Israel’s air defense shield. Reports in Israel suggest that this time, Iran used advanced weaponry and that more of its missiles entered Israel’s air space. One person was killed near the West Bank town of Jericho, and a few people were lightly wounded elsewhere. More missiles increase the risk of debris hitting the ground and causing damage.
Israel plans to retaliate
Arrow, the most advanced of Israel’s defense systems, helped the country and its allies — including the US — intercept the bulk of roughly 200 missiles fired on Oct. 1. The head of IAI, the Israeli manufacturer of Arrow, told Bloomberg that the system performed as expected.
Israeli officials declined to give interception rates, though, and the low number of casualties was also attributed to the wide availability of bomb shelters throughout the country.
Israel vowed to retaliate against Iran for the missile barrage and has been discussing its options with the U.S. in recent weeks. The decision-making security cabinet convened last week but hasn’t yet voted on Israel’s response.
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant's planned visit to Washington last week to meet with his US counterpart was postponed at Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s order. The premier requested to speak to US President Joe Biden first and conclude domestic discussions.
As of Sunday at noon, Israel's security cabinet had no further scheduled meeting.
Biden has made clear that he wants Israel to refrain from attacking Iran’s oil and nuclear facilities, which, if agreed to by Israel, would leave it with a choice of military targets or ones otherwise associated with the Iranian regime.
Gallant said last week that the strike will be powerful, precise, and, above all, contain the element of surprise. “They will not understand what happened and how it happened,” he said.