“I promise you citizens of ‘Israel’: we will complete the job. We will continue until victory.”

This was the fiction from occupation Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as economic turbulence gripped "Israel", forcing scores of companies and businesses into shutdown. The combined death toll from Israeli war crimes in Gaza has topped 10,000, demanding a fierce reckoning at home.

Netanyahu’s principal role in advancing blatant massacres in Gaza makes the economic costs of the genocide particularly significant. Inflation is set to rocket to nearly 7 percent, shattering the myth of "Israel’s" smooth sailing into 2024. It was only recently that the Israeli Central Bank also touted a growth rate of nearly 3 percent next year, another sign that the occupation is keen to sustain a narrative of stability as its active genocide sends shockwaves across the region. 

However, rating agency Moody's shot that growth rate number down to a dismal 1.4 percent and others have followed since. It is Israeli aggression that is squarely to blame for a global recession that is gathering steam in the midst of the genocide. Netanyahu is central to that new wave of economic destruction knocking at the gates.

Whichever way one cuts it, the Israeli occupation is set to brace the economic consequences of its sustained warmongering and brazen military assault in Gaza. All this is a recipe for fueling substantial domestic opposition to Benjamin Netanyahu, a figure courting massive protests and losing a noticeable share of his core support on the back of the genocide. 

First, rising inflation is likely to weigh heavily on public minds in "Israel", one of many factors set to fuel public discontent to Likud’s disadvantage. Netanyahu’s blatant economic incompetence is on full display. Early signs include overwhelming pressure on the pro-settler figure to divert state funds from non-essential items to cater to so-called ‘damage control’ in the economy. Make no mistake – damage control is nothing but bluster. 

In reality, major sectors of "Israel’s" fragile economy are already feeling the heat, as hundreds of economists sound the alarm: that "Israel’s" war would inflict damage worth tens of billions of shekels. For a brutal occupation that takes pride in violating the rights, honor, and liberties of innocent Palestinians in Gaza, these economic consequences are part of an inevitable reckoning at home. Consider it just the beginning of a state-sponsored collapse of power.

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Energy revenue won’t be a saving grace for the occupation. Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip has already dealt a major blow to the occupation's gas exports to Egypt, declining by over two-thirds since October 7 with grim hopes of a turnaround. Netanyahu is on course for economic self-destruction as he plans to commit some $2.2 billion to ultra-Orthodox and hard-right settler parties to keep his sinking coalition in-tact. 

It is the same pro-settler and pro-genocide enterprise that has pushed investors to exit exchange-traded funds in the occupation. More support for pro-settler attacks is thus a recipe to fuel multifront resistance to "Israel", where continuous war spending will render economic unrest untenable within the occupation.

Without doubt, Netanyahu and his Likud party should prepare to incur the astronomical costs of a state-sponsored genocide in Gaza. That includes key political costs that could weaken Netanyahu’s slippery grip over power. It is evidenced by reports that Netanyahu has led 'Israel' to its worst catastrophe in history. Protests held in front of Netanyahu are likely to take on a new life as well, given how Israeli airstrikes and missile attacks killed 60 of the occupation’s own captives in Gaza. The space for Netanyahu to skirt these realities and justify blatant falsehoods is fading fast. 

Fierce opposition is destined to mount, considering that the occupation leader has long positioned himself as the key architect of "Israel’s" so-called growth. But the ongoing genocide confirms that key sectors – from construction to food services – are effectively on their knees. Sustaining the occupation will only accelerate that collapse.

And yet, an unrelenting desire to fund Gaza’s bombardment and genocide could drill more holes in Netanyahu’s fragile alliance of pro-settler and pro-genocide supporters. Earlier reporting by the Financial Times revealed a steady erosion of Netanyahu’s core base, helped in part by a deepening economic crisis that takes the lid off the occupation’s cosmetic growth assurances. 

Consider the fact that nearly 50% of Israeli companies are experiencing a significant drop in their overall revenues, courtesy of "Israel’s" state-sponsored aggression in Gaza. Netanyahu is also struggling to offer any credible rationale to restore dwindling public trust in his government’s financial leadership. A depleted workforce further underscores "Israel’s" coming economic chaos, exposing the extent of internal panic within an occupation that justifies progress at the expense of Palestinian blood. 

"I hold Netanyahu responsible for this [attacks on captives]," one of the captive's relatives recently told Haaretz. 

From the economic collapse to Netanyahu’s brazen political doublespeak, each cost is destined to take its own toll in due course.