The human and material cost of America’s war with Iran is proving larger than previously disclosed, with the Pentagon telling Congress that the conflict has cost $45.1 billion so far, while a Washington Post report said the number of US military fatalities may also be higher than the Pentagon’s publicly reported tally.The Pentagon told lawmakers that the war had cost $43.6 billion as of September 3, with another $1.5 billion spent on additional fuel, according to CNN, citing sources familiar with the matter. The estimate does not include the cost of repairing damaged US military bases and buildings or provide a full accounting of indirect operational costs.The latest figure is higher than the Congressional Budget Office’s estimate of $38 billion through August 1. The CBO has estimated that the war could cost the US another $2 billion to $3 billion a month for as long as fighting continues.
Human toll also under scrutiny
Separately, six US officials familiar with the Pentagon’s internal casualty accounting told the Washington Post that at least 22 US service members had died in the Middle East since the war began, four more than the 18 fatalities listed in the Pentagon’s public casualty database as of Friday.One official put the number at 23, saying not all of the additional deaths were directly tied to combat but involved US personnel in the region amid the ongoing hostilities. Three US contractors based in the region have also died since combat operations began, according to the report.The Pentagon declined to address questions about the discrepancy, while details surrounding the additional deaths, including the identities of those killed and when, how and where they died, remained unclear.
War’s wider costs
The financial estimate also does not capture the full cost of damage to US military infrastructure. US Central Command estimated the war had cost $43.6 billion through early September, including $28 billion to replace munitions and more than $4.3 billion in lost or damaged equipment.The conflict has also put pressure on US weapons stocks and disrupted global energy markets after Iran closed the Strait of Hormuz and Houthis have control of the Bab al-Mandeb Strait. The CBO said the war could push inflation 0.5 percentage points higher in the first quarter of 2027 because of higher energy prices.
