“Israeli” Media Tour of the North: 50% of Buildings Damaged by Hezbollah fire

By Staff

The head of the so-called “Israel” Builders Association, Raul Srugo, announced that half of the buildings in the northern settlements were damaged. He said the reconstruction process will take to a long time.

“Today, we visited the entire area of ??the confrontation line with Lebanon along the border fence, and we saw great destruction in places, such as Al-Manara, Kiryat Shmona, and Metula,” Srugo told Channel 12 during a tour with the “Israeli” media in the north.

“We saw destroyed buildings,” Srugo added. “About 50% of the buildings were damaged, which requires immediate restoration.”

Asked about the cost, Srugo offered an estimate of around “4 billion shekels for restoration and reconstruction.”

He said the estimated cost doesn’t include “a number of projects that must be carried out for municipal modernization, especially in Kiryat Shmona and Metula, by demolishing old buildings and building new ones.”

According to the “Israeli” media, the president of the Builders Association is regretful about the time required to restore and equip the settlements. Srugo said it will take a “very long” time because the government is concerned with budgets, but is not concerned with securing construction workers for these companies to carry out quick work.

“The government does not realize that this will not bring the residents back to their homes soon,” Srugo added, noting that the matter also requires “restoring the roads that were destroyed by our tanks.”

“It’s not just the roads that were destroyed, but also the infrastructure,” Srugo explained. “They do not acknowledge the damage under the road, nor do they acknowledge that funds should be allocated for it.”

For its part, the “Calcalist” newspaper said that “after more than a year since the outbreak of the war, and three weeks after the ceasefire with Hezbollah in Lebanon, the government lacks a plan to rebuild the north and to return the displaced 'residents' to their homes.”

According to the “Israeli” newspaper “Yedioth Ahronoth”, “Hezbollah’s continuous fire and the ‘necessary measures’ taken by the ‘Israeli’ army during the war caused severe damage to nature reserves, parks, and forests in northern ‘Israel’.”