A government team responsible for assessing the economic damages caused by the PA\'s terrorist war against Israel convened for its first meeting this week - and was already able to establish that the situation is bleak. Minister Danny Naveh, appointed by Prime Minister Sharon to head the investigation, said this week that initial reports \"paint a very serious picture regarding the scope of the damages,\" which total billions of shekels in direct and indirect damages to the Israeli economy since September 2000. The National Insurance Institute, for instance, paid 202 million shekels to terror victims in the year 2001.
Other government offices also suffered large-scale losses, but in many cases the extent of the damage is still unknown. The losses include security expenditures for the war against terrorism, losses to the Israeli economy, and damages caused to both the citizens of the state and Israeli companies. Naveh requested that the government offices collect the data within a week, and transfer the information to a sub-team composed of representatives of the Prime Minister’s Office, the Treasury and the Bank of Israel. The team will publish its findings within several weeks.
Earlier this week, Foreign Minister Shimon Peres said that Israel would be \"willing to discuss\" the European Union\'s complaints that Israel\'s military actions had caused damage to EU-sponsored projects in the PA areas. Minister Naveh, however, hurried to say that Peres\' remarks were a \"grave diplomatic error,\" and the Prime Minister\'s Office announced that it is the PA that is liable for the heavy damages it has caused Israel during this war.
Other government offices also suffered large-scale losses, but in many cases the extent of the damage is still unknown. The losses include security expenditures for the war against terrorism, losses to the Israeli economy, and damages caused to both the citizens of the state and Israeli companies. Naveh requested that the government offices collect the data within a week, and transfer the information to a sub-team composed of representatives of the Prime Minister’s Office, the Treasury and the Bank of Israel. The team will publish its findings within several weeks.
Earlier this week, Foreign Minister Shimon Peres said that Israel would be \"willing to discuss\" the European Union\'s complaints that Israel\'s military actions had caused damage to EU-sponsored projects in the PA areas. Minister Naveh, however, hurried to say that Peres\' remarks were a \"grave diplomatic error,\" and the Prime Minister\'s Office announced that it is the PA that is liable for the heavy damages it has caused Israel during this war.