A top Treasury official Sunday said that an Israeli attack on Iran would lead to a “major recession” in the country. Quoted in Yediot Achronot, the official said that in the event of an attack leading to a general Mideast conflict, “there is no doubt that growth would be negative, with business in the entire Middle East closing down for at least a few weeks. We would enter an era of privation. Tens of thousands of people would be fired,” the official said.
The comments were seen as an expansion of a speech made over the weekend by Bank of Israel chairman Stanley Fischer, who said that there would be aspects of a war that would be very difficult to deal with. “We are preparing for a real crisis, and for a much less positive security situation,” Fischer said.