Media: Pentagon’s Middle East buildup costs $1.6B

The Pentagon estimates the US military buildup in the Middle East since Hamas' October 7 attacks on Israel will cost $1.6 billion, a bill the department is unable to pay due to lawmakers’ inability to pass a budget, according to two US officials, Report informs, citing Politico.

The Defense Department recently sent the estimate to congressional appropriators in response to questions, said the officials, who were granted anonymity to speak about information that hasn’t been made public.

The overall number includes the cost of sending additional warships, fighter jets, and equipment to the region and keeping them there for the last four months, the officials said. It does not include the cost of the missiles the US military has expended striking Houthi positions in Yemen or knocking down drones and missiles in the Red Sea, they said, because there is not enough data yet to make those calculations.

Over a full year, the cost of the military surge could rise to $2.2 billion, according to the estimate.

Since the October 7 terrorist attack, the Pentagon has ordered an additional aircraft carrier strike group, marine-carrying amphibious ships, fighter jets, air defenses, and hundreds of troops to the Middle East. Those forces initially served to deter additional groups from getting involved in the conflict, and more recently, they have been protecting civilian ships in the Red Sea from attacks by Houthi rebels.

But because lawmakers have not yet agreed on a full-year spending bill for the Defense Department, the military does not have the money to pay for those unplanned operations.