WASHINGTON: The US military’s operations against Iran have already cost billions of dollars, with munitions expenditure reaching $5.6 billion to $6bn in just the opening days of the conflict, multiple news outlets reported.
According to reports, these estimates were shared with Congress on Monday, though the Pentagon declined to comment publicly on the figures.
The New York Times reported that Pentagon officials informed lawmakers that the first week of operations cost roughly $6bn, with around $4bn spent on munitions and missile interceptors.
CBS News noted that the $5.6bn figure covers only the first 48 hours of the conflict, while The Washington Post confirmed a similar cost for the same period. The Hill also verified that the Pentagon had provided these figures to congressional members.
Reuters, citing US administration sources, reported $5.6bn in munitions costs during the initial days of the conflict.
Analysts warn that total operational costs could exceed $10bn within 10 days, driven by high-intensity strikes and the use of expensive, high-precision weapons.
While Pentagon officials have not commented publicly on the 10-day projections, the steep early expenditure has raised concerns among lawmakers over the rapid depletion of munitions stockpiles and the broader budgetary impact of prolonged operations.
The conflict, which began on February 28, has already placed historic financial pressures on US military resources, highlighting the high cost of modern, technology-intensive warfare.
Quoting Pentagon sources, CBS News reported that approximately 140 US service members have been wounded in the first 10 days of operations.
A Washington-based non-partisan think tank estimates that Operation Epic Fury is costing the US government nearly $900 million per day.
The first 100 hours (H+100) of the operation are estimated to cost $3.7bn.
A table released by the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) breaks down the costs into three categories:
- Operational costs — approximately $196m
- Munitions replacement — approximately $3.1bn
- Replacing combat losses and repairing infrastructure damage — approximately $359m
