The Israeli government has pledged to pay shipowners compensation for any vessels damaged during its war with Hamas in Gaza.

The move is designed to encourage shipping companies to keep goods flowing into the country.

Israel’s tax authority said in a statement on Thursday that payments would be made for “war damage” sustained by any domestic or overseas ships in Israeli waters.

“War damage is defined under the law as damage that is caused to the body of an asset due to acts of war by the regular forces of an enemy or due to other acts of hostility against Israel, or due to acts of war by the Israel Defense Forces,” the statement cited by Reuters said.

The rate will be 100% of the actual damage, which the statement said would be the difference between the value of the vessel before and after any incident.

Following the Hamas attacks on Israel, the country’s major ports have mostly continued to operate as normal — including road and rail links — with the exception of the tanker port of Ashkelon, which is now closed.

TradeWinds has reported that liner operator Zim is to pass on an Israel war risk surcharge to customers following a massive increase in insurance premium for ships trading to the country’s ports.

Source: TradeWinds