US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth has said the war with Iran has cost the United States about $37.5bn (£28bn) so far, according to BBC News, as he pressed senators to approve billions more in Pentagon funding.
Speaking to the Senate Appropriations Committee, Hegseth said lawmakers needed to approve an additional $87bn for the Pentagon. He said $67bn of that request would be allocated to operations in the Middle East.
The latest figure represents an increase of nearly $8bn from the previous estimate in May. Hegseth said the extra funding was needed to avoid shortfalls in paying service personnel, replacing equipment and munitions, and sustaining operations.
The hearing was interrupted several times by anti-war protesters and later descended into a heated exchange between Hegseth and Democratic Senator Gary Peters. Peters called Hegseth a “failure” and accused the Trump administration of creating another “forever war”. Hegseth responded by saying “shame on you” and accused the senator of having “Trump derangement syndrome”.
The appearance was Hegseth’s first on Capitol Hill since hostilities between the US and Iran resumed last week. The BBC reported that the US carried out an 11th consecutive day of strikes on Tuesday, while Iran has also launched strikes against the US and its allies in the Middle East.
Democratic senators challenged the request during the hearing. Senator Patty Murray said it “does not make a lot of sense”, while Senator Kirsten Gillibrand accused the administration of seeking “unlimited money for bombs” at a time when some Americans cannot afford food.
Hegseth told the committee the funding would be a long-term investment intended to strengthen the US military and prevent it from falling behind other countries’ armed forces. He also blamed the previous Biden administration for what he described as underfunding of the military.
The BBC said two Democratic sources and another source familiar with the matter told its media partner CBS that they believed the true cost of the war was higher than the official estimate, because some costs, including construction linked to damaged American bases, were not included.
There had been no official government estimate of the war’s financial cost since 12 May, when a senior Pentagon official put the figure at $29bn. The Pentagon had previously told lawmakers that the first week of the war cost about $11.3bn.
The White House requested $1.5tn for the Pentagon in April for the next fiscal year, a level BBC News said would take US military spending to a modern-era high.
The funding request faces opposition from most Democrats and unease among some Republicans, including fiscal conservatives seeking spending cuts elsewhere. The House of Representatives is due to leave town on Thursday, and both chambers of Congress are not expected to be jointly back in session until September.
On Tuesday, the Pentagon announced the death of Sgt Michael Emmanuel Swinton, 30, in Iraq. It also said Sgt Angel Rampersad, 28, was believed dead in Jordan. A day earlier, the military named Pfc Isabella Gonzales, 19, and 1st Lt Tyler Feehan, 25, as having been killed in action in Jordan.
President Donald Trump wrote on Truth Social that 18 people had died so far in the US war with Iran, which he said began on 28 February. He is due to visit an air base in Delaware as the soldiers’ coffins are returned to the US.
