World Bank President Ajay Banga called the high number of civilian deaths in the region “unconscionable” and cautioned that a major escalation of the Israel-Gaza conflict could have a significant impact on the world economy.
Ajay Banga stated in a Reuters NEXT Newsmaker interview that while the war has so far had a minor effect on the world economy, a major expansion of the conflict would attract other nations that contribute more to global growth, such as commodity exporters.
“First of all, I think this unbelievable loss of life – women, children, others, civilians, is just unconscionable on all sides. The economic impact of this war, on the other hand, depends a great deal on how much this spreads,” Ajay Banga said.
“If it spreads regionally, then it becomes a completely different issue because now you start going into places that are far larger contributors to the world economy, both in terms of dollars, but also in terms of minerals and metals and oil and the like,” he observed.
Though Israel’s strongest ally, the United States, has stated that it will continue to support Israel and is sending troops and an anti-missile system, some Western nations are pressing for a ceasefire in Gaza and between Israel and Lebanon.
Israel’s offensive against Hamas began following their October 7 attack on Israel.
According to Gaza’s health authorities, more than 42,000 Palestinians have died in the offensive so far. The Lebanese Health Ministry reports that over 11.2 million people have been displaced as a result of Israeli strikes, which have also killed at least 2,350 people in Lebanon over the past year and injured close to 11,000 others.
According to Ajay Banga, the destruction caused by Israel’s bombing of southern Lebanon will contribute to the USD 14–20 billion in war damage that has already likely resulted from Israeli strikes on Gaza.