Iranian strikes caused up to $5.1B in damage to US facilities, WSJ says

Iranian missile and drone attacks damaged dozens of US military and diplomatic facilities in the Middle East, with total damage potentially reaching $5.1 billion.

Report informs, citing the findings of a Wall Street Journal investigation, that the total damage is estimated at between $2.2 billion and $5.1 billion.

According to the newspaper, Iranian strikes caused serious destruction at the US Naval Support Activity Bahrain base. Citing satellite imagery, the WSJ claimed that the base was directly hit, damaging the command headquarters, at least 10 other buildings and satellite communications terminals. The restoration of this base alone is expected to cost about $400 million.

Washington is also reviewing the US military presence in the region, taking into account the vulnerability of its bases to modern precision-guided weapons. As part of a possible strategic adjustment, the redistribution of forces and a partial reduction of the US presence in several Gulf countries are being discussed.

In particular, the reorganization of the base in Bahrain, a reduction of the US presence in Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, and the relocation of some bases farther west, where they would be less vulnerable to Iranian missile and drone attacks, are being considered.

For this reason, the destroyed facilities may not be rebuilt at all. Sources cited by the newspaper stressed that no final decisions had been made yet, but two sources said Israel was currently being considered as a new location for the deployment of forces.

In May, the Pentagon estimated US war-related costs against Iran at $29 billion, but Jay Hurst, head of the Pentagon's finance office, told Congress that this figure did not include the cost of rebuilding bases.

The fragile ceasefire between the United States and Iran was broken on June 27 after both sides began launching attacks in the Gulf. According to a US military official, the United States targeted Iranian communications and air defense facilities, as well as storage sites for drones and mine-laying equipment. The attack was prompted by an incident involving an oil tanker in the Strait of Hormuz.