US defence chief Hegseth puts Iran war cost at $37.5bn so far

What the report says

Al Jazeera reports that US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told the Senate Appropriations Committee on Tuesday that the US-Israel war with Iran has cost the United States $37.5bn so far. Hegseth and Joint Chiefs Chairman Dan Caine appeared before lawmakers to defend a proposed $1.5 trillion defence budget, which includes almost $70bn tied to the Iran conflict.

The figure is the latest official administration estimate and is about $8bn above the $29bn total cited in May, according to the report. Hegseth said the amount includes some operations and maintenance costs through the end of September, but he did not offer a detailed breakdown. Al Jazeera noted that outside estimates are higher when broader domestic effects are counted, citing Moody’s Analytics as putting possible US costs as high as $150bn due in part to increased energy prices.

The hearing took place as fighting continued after a memorandum of understanding that had paused attacks since June 17 reportedly collapsed last week. Al Jazeera says President Donald Trump threatened further action against Iranian targets after two US soldiers were killed over the weekend, while Iran has said it will continue attacks on US assets in the region. The report also cited recent strikes affecting sites in Kuwait, Bahrain and Jordan, and a Houthi-declared maritime blockade against Saudi Arabia.

Hegseth argued that additional funding is needed to replenish and expand production of high-demand weapons, including rocket motors, JDAMs, hypersonics and counter-drone systems. Democratic Senator Patty Murray questioned the breadth of the budget request, which also covers other military deployments and operations.