# US Strikes Iran for an 11th Night as Pentagon Puts the War's Cost at $37.5 Billion

Trump renewed his threat to strike the fortified nuclear site known as Pickaxe Mountain as Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth defended the spending before senators.

- Published: 2026-07-22T05:31:48.407Z
- Canonical: https://polylog.news/2026-07-22/us-strikes-iran-for-an-11th-night-as-pentagon-puts-the-war-s
- Publisher: Polylog (Global desk)
- Section: geopolitics
- Sources: [The Hindu](https://www.thehindu.com/news/international/iran-us-war-live-updates-11th-night-attacks-ceasefire-deal-us-central-command-strait-of-hormuz-donald-trump-tehran/article71251991.ece), [Deutsche Welle](https://www.dw.com/en/hegseth-says-iran-war-has-cost-375-billion-so-far/live-78060128), [Globes](https://www.globes.co.il/news/article.aspx?did=1001550092#utm_source=RSS), [South China Morning Post](https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3361423/iran-war-drags-trump-sets-sights-pickaxe-mountain)

United States Central Command completed an 11th consecutive night of strikes on Iran, targeting what the Israeli outlet Globes [described](https://www.globes.co.il/news/article.aspx?did=1001550092#utm_source=RSS) as drone-storage sites and maritime targets, with explosions reported in several locations. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Iran was not serious about talks. Iranian state media reported that air defenses in Tehran engaged what they called hostile targets, and Iranian authorities said a projectile struck near the city of Baneh.

The war's cost has become a point of political contention in Washington. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told the Senate Appropriations Committee that the conflict has cost $37.5 billion so far, [Deutsche Welle reported](https://www.dw.com/en/hegseth-says-iran-war-has-cost-375-billion-so-far/live-78060128), as he pressed for additional funding. The Hindu, [tracking the fighting live](https://www.thehindu.com/news/international/iran-us-war-live-updates-11th-night-attacks-ceasefire-deal-us-central-command-strait-of-hormuz-donald-trump-tehran/article71251991.ece), noted Trump's statement that the campaign was "not finished."

Trump has identified a new target. He said the United States would strike the area around Pickaxe Mountain "pretty soon, and very heavily," a fortified underground site that the South China Morning Post [reported](https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3361423/iran-war-drags-trump-sets-sights-pickaxe-mountain) is believed to be tied to Iran's nuclear program. The renewed threat is difficult to reconcile with earlier White House claims that US strikes last year had destroyed Iran's main nuclear facilities.

Accounts of the fighting differ by source. US and Israeli reporting emphasizes the targeting of military and naval assets, while Iranian state media stresses civilian areas struck and defenses activated. Iran has said it fired at US positions in Jordan, Bahrain and Kuwait, claims that neither Washington nor the Gulf states have fully confirmed.

## What this means

A conflict now in its second week keeps a geopolitical risk premium in crude oil, because Iran sits on the Strait of Hormuz, through which a large share of seaborne oil moves, and any strike near that narrow passage raises the odds of a supply disruption that oil importers must price in. The $37.5 billion figure and Hegseth's funding request shift the debate to Congress, where the cost and an open-ended commitment become a domestic political constraint on how long the campaign can run.

## What to watch

- Whether the United States actually strikes Pickaxe Mountain, since hitting a deep nuclear site would mark an escalation beyond military and naval targets and could draw a sharper Iranian response.
- Any incident in or near the Strait of Hormuz, because a confirmed strike on shipping or infrastructure there would push the oil risk premium higher and add to energy-driven inflation.
- Congressional resistance to Hegseth's funding request, which would signal domestic limits on how long Washington can sustain the campaign.