The U.S. military on Tuesday rejected claims by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) that a Panama-flagged oil tanker, the El Gaia, caught fire after striking naval mines in the Strait of Hormuz. U.S. Central Command stated the vessel was instead targeted by an Iranian drone over the weekend while in Omani waters. The military further noted that the same tanker had been rendered "inoperable" by an Iranian missile strike last month and is currently being towed by a regional partner.
This development occurred as a Pentagon watchdog report detailed the financial and material scale of the U.S. war with Iran, which began in February 2026. The Defense Department’s inspector general estimated the conflict cost the U.S. military $33.4 billion through June 29, 2026. This total includes $22.3 billion for munitions and $3.7 billion for lost equipment, such as 30 MQ-9 Reaper drones and four F-15E fighter jets. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth later informed Congress in late July that the total cost had reached approximately $37.5 billion.
The conflict has caused significant disruption to global energy markets, with Brent crude prices reaching a near four-month high of approximately $108 per barrel on Monday, September 14. Prices have risen from a pre-war average of $67 per barrel due to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz and a recent attack on Saudi Arabia’s East-West pipeline. The pipeline, which allows Saudi Arabia to bypass the Strait of Hormuz by transporting oil to the Red Sea, was shut down last week following a strike that Iraqi officials said originated from their territory.
The conflict and related attacks by Iran-aligned Houthi rebels affect global consumers through increased energy costs and regional governments through infrastructure damage. Brent crude prices rose from $67 to $108 per barrel, a increase that impacts household fuel bills and transportation costs. In Saudi Arabia, crude oil output fell to under 6 million barrels per day in August, down from 8 million in July, as the kingdom was under its 10.42 million barrel target. A long-term disruption to the East-West pipeline could remove 4% of the world's oil supply from the market, compounding the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
For the U.S. military, the expenditure of $22.3 billion in munitions over four months has created what the Pentagon’s acquisition office described as strategic inventory shortfalls and industrial bottlenecks. The conflict has also resulted in $184 million in damage to U.S. diplomatic facilities in Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE. Meanwhile, in Yemen, the Houthi seizure of the port city of Mokha and Perim Island has placed an Iran-aligned group in a position overlooking the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, a waterway that typically handles 10% of global oil supplies.
On the diplomatic front, President Donald Trump stated on Monday, September 14, that he is "open" to the "concept" of negotiations, though he previously told Fox News on September 1 that an agreement with Iran "isn't worth the paper it's written on." Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, dismissed these remarks as "mixed signals" and stated there would be no talks until Iran's conditions are met. Regional officials estimate the East-West pipeline will take three to five weeks to return to full capacity, while Australian Energy Minister Chris Bowen is scheduled to meet with Saudi officials next week to discuss fuel security for Australia, which relies on imports for 84% of its petroleum needs.