Calls to Israeli businesses in Safad: Leave or face consequences
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Israeli media says that Hezbollah is escalating psychological warfare as the genocide in Gaza continues and risks of escalation in the North continue to grow.
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Israeli occupation soldiers look on as a settler boards a bus in the "Kiryat Shmona" settlement on the border with Lebanon, before being evacuated on October 22, 2023. (AFP)
Israeli business owners in Safad are receiving prerecorded calls asking them to leave the city and liquidate their assets or "fall prey to mice amid the destruction" as Resistance factions escalate measures amid the continued genocide in Gaza.
Channel 12 reported that dozens of companies and institutions, including hotels, received the calls on their business landlines.
Read more: Hezbollah foils Israeli infiltration attempts into Lebanese territory
"These calls" are part of a new "psychological war being waged by Hezbollah," the outlet claimed.
"We recall several weeks ago when SMS messages were sent to residents, and later private messages were sent to heads of local authorities, and this time it is being done with business owners, with a strong focus on Safed."
The Islamic Resistance in Lebanon previously targeted the headquarters of the Israeli Northern Command in Safed. The occupation admitted the attack killed one soldier and wounded several others.
Another attack on the city was recorded earlier as well, but no party claimed responsibility for the operation.
Moody's downgrade and Hezbollah
Thousands of businesses in northern occupied Palestine have either shut down or are about to due to ongoing Hezbollah operations targeting Israeli military sites and settlements since October, which also resulted in nearly a quarter-million settlers fleeing, as per a report by The Wall Street Journal published late December 2023.
The business in question includes major poultry and agrifood producers, leading to prices skyrocketing in the occupation entity.
"Farmers in the north complain of the difficulties to reach the farmland alongside the border area, with there being losses on two fronts: the unharvested fruits and the damages done to the next harvest season," Yedioth Ahronoth reported.
Read more: 'Israel' 2024 revised budget deficit tripled from original forecast
The Bank of Israel warned earlier that the evacuation of tens of thousands of settlers has been costing them an estimated $158 million each week.
Meanwhile, the financial toll on the Israeli economy has surpassed $60 billion, nearly half of "Israel's" annual budget, with "Israel" planning to borrow a similar amount through bond issuing and private loans to continue funding its war on Gaza.
The drafting of 300,000 reservists impacted several crucial economic sectors, including the tech industry, commerce, and tourism. Despite this, the shekel has retained relatively strong levels of stability.
The Israeli economy has taken a heavy toll as it contracted nearly 20% in annual terms in Q4 2023. Moreover, GDP fell by 19.4% compared to the previous quarter on an annual basis and by 5.2% on a quarter-by-quarter basis, official data showed.
Citing the ongoing war, Moody's, the US ratings agency, downgraded "Israel's" credit rating last month, and revised its outlook for the entity's debt to "negative" over possible escalation with Hezbollah on the northern front.
Fitch international credit rating firm is also planning a similar move.
