Iraq bills still due: costs of war rising.

• Author: Doherty, Brian
• Position: Citings - Brief article

THE IRAQ War could ultimately cost American taxpayers more than $5 trillion, according to a report published by researchers at Brown University on the 10th anniversary of Operation Iraqi Freedom.

The calculation, by the Costs of War Project at Brown's Watson Institute for International Studies, starts with $1.7 trillion in direct costs already accrued, including $770 billion in Defense Department spending and $86 billion in disability payments by the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Social Security Administration. The researchers estimate that another $500 billion or so will be owed in veteran's benefits over the lifetimes of...