1Berita News – The Governor of the Central Bank of Israel, Amir Yaron, has written to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, urging fiscal discipline and caution in using state funds for attacks on Gaza, Palestine.

The letter serves as Yaron’s final plea before the cabinet votes on revising Israel’s budget for 2024. The proposed increase in budget, aimed at combating Hamas, is being discussed by Israeli ministers today, with the vote scheduled for midnight.

Yaron’s use of the idiom “there is no free lunch” emphasizes the need for Netanyahu to exercise fiscal responsibility and avoid excessive military spending. Yaron warns that an inflated defense budget without adjustments in other budgetary areas could harm Israel’s economic growth and worsen the debt-to-GDP ratio.

The Central Bank Governor estimates the cost of the conflict with Palestine to be $56 billion, not accounting for potential income losses near the Gaza and Lebanon borders.

The Israeli Ministry of Finance predicts an additional expenditure of 50 billion shekels or approximately Rp208 trillion this year, potentially causing the budget deficit to nearly triple to 6 percent of the GDP.