The president of the World Bank, Ajay Banga, warned today that the war between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas risks having serious economic consequences, reports Notícias ao Minuto..

"I think what is happening in Israel and Gaza (...) will have a serious impact on economic development," Banga said during an investors' conference in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

"I think we are at a very dangerous moment," he added, quoted by the French news agency AFP.

It should be noted that Hamas commandos carried out an unprecedented attack on Israel on October 7, followed by Israeli retaliation with a total siege of the Gaza Strip and constant bombardment of the territory.

The Israeli authorities claim that Hamas attacks have killed more than 1,400 people and that the Palestinian group has kidnapped 220 Israelis and foreigners, whom it is holding hostage in the Gaza Strip.

Hamas, which has ruled Gaza since 2007, said that Israeli shelling had killed more than 5,000 people, including more than 2,000 children.

Israel, the United States and the European Union consider Hamas to be a terrorist organization.

The president of the World Bank is in Riyadh to take part in the annual conference of the Future Investment Initiative, often referred to as the "Davos of the desert", in reference to the meeting held in Switzerland.

More than six delegates are taking part in the three-day forum, including the heads of the world's leading banks and companies, and the presidents of South Korea, Kenya and Rwanda, according to the organizers.