Operation Protective Edge in numbers
After fifty days of intense cross border rocket fire into Israel by Gaza terror and heavy retaliation attacks on Gaza by the IDF and IAF, a ceasefire has finally been reached. Ynet takes a look back at the operation, and tallies the rockets, costs and lives the operation has taken.
After fifty days of intense cross border rocket fire into Israel by Gaza terrorists and heavy retaliation attacks on Gaza by the IDF and IAF, a ceasefire has finally been reached. Ynet takes a look back at the operation, and tallies the rockets, costs and lives the operation has taken.
Since the beginning of the operation on July 8th, 4,564 rockets and mortars were fired at Israel from Gaza Strip.
Most proved to be harmless when of the 3,641 which exploded in Israeli territory only 224 hit residential areas, and the remaining fell in open areas; Iron Dome intercepted over 735.
Over 1,300 of the rockets hit the Eshkol Regional Council, only 175 in the past two days.
The IDF said it attacked 5,263 targets across the Gaza Strip, hitting a terror infrastructure, namely rocket launching sites, arms and munitions factories and warehouses, as well as the homes and offices of Hamas and its local regime. Over 34 known tunnels were also destroyed.
Palestinian health officials say 2,139 people, most of them civilians, including more than 490 children, have been killed in the enclave since the operation began, while over 11,000 were injured.
The Palestinian Center for Human Rights said 540,000 people had been displaced in the Gaza Strip and roughly 100,000 are homeless.
Israel has said Hamas bears responsibility for civilian casualties because it operates among civilians and uses schools and mosques to store weapons and as launch sites for rockets.
Israel's death toll stood at 64 soldiers and six civilians – one was a 4-year-old boy and another died Tuesday after the ceasefire came into effect, succumbing to wounds caused by a mortar attack which took place hours before the deal was struck.
Meanwhile, nearly 3,000 claims for damage have been submitted to the Israel Tax Authority, which has so far paid some $20 million for direct damages and another $21 million for missed work days and other indirect damage.
According to existing laws, workers in businesses located within 40 kilometers from the Gaza border get paid for the days they are absent from work, and their employers are eligible for full compensation from the government for these wages.
Israel's Manufacturers Association estimated the total economic impact on Israeli manufacturers for the first round of the conflict at about 1.2 billion shekels, with factories in the south accounting for 40 percent of this figure, and facilities in Haifa and the center of the country incurring half the losses.
The agricultural sector has also experienced significant physical damage from the falling projectiles.
The latest war with Hamas came at a time when the Israeli economy was already in a slowdown, with a strong shekel decreasing exports and growth for the second quarter of 2014 falling to 1.7 percent from 2.8 percent in the first quarter.
In response, the Bank of Israel decided on July 28 to cut its benchmark interest rate to a five-year low of 0.5 percent, a response reiterated Monday
Reuters, the Associated Press, Yoav Zitun Ze'ev Ben-Yechiel (Tazpit News Agency) and Ilana Curiel contributed to this report
