Iranian strikes inflict billions in damage on US bases across Gulf region

Iranian strikes on US military assets and bases across the Gulf region have inflicted billions of dollars in damage, according to reports, raising significant questions over the Trump administration’s transparency regarding the total cost of repairs.

Six sources familiar with the scale of the destruction told NBC News that Iranian forces targeted runways, advanced radar systems, dozens of aircraft, warehouses, command centers, aircraft hangars, and satellite communication infrastructure.

Reconstructing the damage spread across several Middle Eastern nations is estimated to cost as much as $5 billion.

According to the reports, this projected figure does not include the costs associated with repairing or replacing radar units, weapons systems, aircraft, and other specialized equipment rendered inoperable or destroyed by the Iranian strikes.

Following joint US-Israeli strikes on Feb. 28, the date the conflict began, the initial damage at Camp Buehring in Kuwait was reportedly inflicted by an Iranian F-5 fighter jet.

At Al Dhafra Air Base and Al Ruwais military base in the United Arab Emirates, damage was recorded to fuel depots, a medical clinic, hangars, barracks, and various other structures.

Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia, Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in Jordan, and Kuwait’s Camp Arifjan, Camp Buehring, and the Port of Shuaiba were also among the sites where US assets sustained damage.

Three officials informed NBC News of extensive damage to the US Naval Forces headquarters in Bahrain and at least two air defense systems.

A congressional official, citing a Pentagon assessment, told the New York Times that the cost of repairing the US 5th Fleet headquarters alone could reach $200 million.

An external evaluation by the American Enterprise Institute (AEI) indicated that Iranian forces also struck Ali Al Salem Air Base in Kuwait, a runway at Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar, and an ammunition storage facility at a military installation in northern Iraq.

Mackenzie Eaglen, a senior fellow at AEI, stated that the long-term costs of rebuilding US overseas military infrastructure under “Operation Epic Fury” would encompass repair, reconstruction, total replacement, or even the decommissioning and abandonment of certain sites.

Eaglen added that the assessment of war damage includes projected costs for infrastructure deemed beyond recovery.

Other damaged assets include at least one fighter jet, 12 MQ-9 Reaper drones, two MC-130 tankers, various helicopters, and an E-3 Sentry aircraft. The Pentagon has yet to issue a formal statement on the matter.

In March, the Pentagon estimated that the first six days of the conflict against Iran cost more than $11.3 billion, excluding necessary repair calculations. During the first two days of the conflict alone, $5.6 billion was reportedly spent on munitions.

Insufficient briefings to lawmakers regarding the mounting costs of military operations have sparked unease among elected officials and their staff.

“Nobody knows anything,” an advisor told NBC. “It is not for lack of asking; we have been asking for weeks, and we cannot get details even as the Pentagon requests a record-high budget.”