Iran has caused “billions” of dollars in damage to U.S. intelligence infrastructure, according to a new report, which comes as the war continues to drag on with no clear end in sight. Iranian drones and missiles have struck “intelligence posts and surveillance hardware in the Middle East that is more extensive than any destruction America’s spy agencies have endured,” NBC News reported, citing four unnamed sources. The damage is expected to cost billions to repair.
A CIA station in Riyadh, capital of Saudi Arabia, was struck by Iranian drones in March, reported last month. A separate CIA facility in eastern Iraq was also targeted. Sources told NBC that additional sites had been hit but declined to provide further details.
U.S. officials have also investigated whether Russia supplied Iran with drone technology or targeting information. The Independent has contacted the White House and Office of the Director of National Intelligence for comment. The Pentagon has acknowledged that the war — which began when the United States and Israel jointly attacked Iran in late February — has already cost the U.S. tens of billions of dollars.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told Congress last month that the conflict had cost $37.5 billion, while arguing that an additional $67 billion was needed. The first six days of the war alone cost more than $11.3 billion, Pentagon officials reportedly told lawmakers in March. The U.S. military has expended nearly all of its stockpiled, long-range precision missiles, CBS News reported this month.
President Donald Trump has insisted that the U.S. still maintains “massive amounts” of weapons. But he reportedly confronted Hegseth earlier this month over the apparent shortage, saying he believed the problem “had been fixed.” The broader U.S. economy has also been impacted, with the closure of the Strait of Hormuz triggering spikes in global fuel prices. On Wednesday, the national average price of gasoline stood at $4.10 per gallon, up from $2.98 in the days before the war began, according to AAA.
Beyond the monetary and munitions costs, the conflict has resulted in the deaths of 18 U.S. service members and wounded hundreds more, the Pentagon has said. Iran, meanwhile, has suffered extensive damage. The U.S. has said it has targeted more than 13,000 locations across the Middle Eastern country, launching waves of strikes over several consecutive nights.
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