Iran War Day 192: Americans Have Paid Over $100 Billion in Higher Energy Costs Since War Began

The Iran War State of the Union: Iran announced new plans for control over the Strait of Hormuz, and continuing Israeli strikes left at least twelve dead in Lebanon. Photo by Charles-McClintock Wilson/NurPhoto via Getty Images As of Monday, the Iran War has cost Americans over $100 billion in higher energy prices, according to an estimate from Brown University. Brown’s Iran War Energy Cost Tracker, which attempts to measure the burden of increased gasoline and diesel costs on American consumers, shows this figure rising by around $1 million every two minutes. Compared to the prewar baseline, average gas and diesel prices are up by 39 percent and 61 percent, respectively. Subscribe Today Get daily emails in your inbox Mohsen Rezaei, the head of the Iranian Supreme National Security Council, said Sunday that Iran would introduce a new “restricted zone” around the Strait of Hormuz. Rezaei said this area will “begin from the U.S. Navy’s blockade line and extend into parts of the Persian Gulf,” and threatened consequences for vessels entering it without Iranian permission. In southern Lebanon, Israel continued to conduct strikes Monday against what it claimed were Hezbollah targets. Attacks earlier today reportedly left at least twelve people dead, including two children and a paramedic. In a statement, the Lebanese health ministry said the casualties provided “irrefutable evidence of the grave violations of international humanitarian law committed by the Israeli occupation, targeting medics and children.” AAA reported that the average price of gasoline in the United States was $4.15 per gallon.