In the two years since October 7, 2023, the United States has incurred significant costs in a broad set of military actions in support of U.S., Israeli, and allied interests in the wider Middle East.

From the runways to the malls, military style is everywhere. But when did camo stop meaning war, and start meaning cute? [1/2]

It’s New York Fashion Week. Shouldn’t we be curious about why “camo” is seemingly everywhere in the lives of people not in the military? Read our latest cultural analysis on the militarization of fashion. costsofwar.watson.brown.edu/paper/consum...

What does it say about our society that “Half the people on the street are dressed to kill,” as one New York Times critic has noted? Our new analysis explores one of the subtle ways we consume war: from bomber jackets to camo, militarized fashion consciously and unconsciously glorifies war. [THREAD]

ICE funding exceeds the military budgets of all but 15 countries, reports @stephensemler.bsky.social. www.stephensemler.com/p/democratic...

U.S. counterterrorism spending in Somalia – over $2.5 billion since 2007 – dwarfs tax revenue raised by the Somali federal government.

While “mass surveillance” is often used to refer to government spying, in the post-9/11 era it involves a complex grouping of federal agencies, local police, private companies, and even members of the public.

Sporting events like the Super Bowl play a pivotal role in helping the U.S. armed forces recruit new troops. Between 2012-2015, the Pentagon spent $53 million to subsidize various sporting events and promotional campaigns.

Reminder: Join us today at 4:00 p.m. ET for a panel reflecting on the political costs of war for U.S. democracy. In-person participants must register in advance here: events.brown.edu/watson/event... Watch the livestream here: www.youtube.com/live/6AQDMKL...

Between 2021 and 2023, the U.S. government conducted counterterrorism operations in 78 countries. costsofwar.watson.brown.edu/paper/united...

A sad day. Reliable information is essential in conflict zones if we are to understand the costs of war. The de-prioritization of international news coverage makes it harder to track those myriad costs, including civilian death tolls.

Tomorrow: Join us for an interdisciplinary panel reflecting on the political costs of war for the U.S. today. All participants must register in advance for in-person attendance; the event will also be streamed live at 4:00 pm ET. Learn more and register here: events.brown.edu/watson/event...

Some experts have argued that China’s military expenditures are far higher than official reporting would suggest. But either way, the U.S. continues to outspend China on defense by a substantial margin.

Between 2020 and 2024, $771 billion in Pentagon contracts went to just five firms: Lockheed Martin, RTX, Boeing, General Dynamics, and Northrop Grumman. costsofwar.watson.brown.edu/paper/profit...

Since October 7, 2023, more than 10% of the population of Gaza has been directly killed or wounded. The Israeli military now reportedly accepts the death toll provided by the Gaza Health Ministry. en.ara.cat/internationa...

The ICE killing of VA nurse Alex Pretti and the administration's response to it has demoralized VA staff, reports the American Prospect, citing our research that the post 9-11 wars produced the most disabled cohort of veterans in American history. prospect.org/2026/01/28/i...

Since the U.S. assault on Fallujah in 2004, childhood cancers have surged twelvefold — exceeding the rates recorded in Hiroshima after the atomic bombing. There's also been a 17-fold rise in birth anomalies. Important piece from The Real News, citing our research. therealnews.com/fallujah-us-...

At least 5.27 million people have fled or been forced to leave their homes in Gaza, Iran, Israel, Lebanon, and the West Bank since October 7, 2023 – including an estimated 1.85 million displaced children.

In opposition to the Vietnam War, organizations such as the International War Toys Boycott argued that war-themed toys glorified violence. Companies such as Sears Roebuck stopped selling war toys for almost fifteen years. [1/3]

Join us on Feb. 5, 2026 at 4:00-5:30 p.m. ET for an interdisciplinary panel reflecting on the political costs of war for the U.S. today. All participants must register in advance for in-person attendance; the event will also be streamed live. Register here: events.brown.edu/watson/event...

ICE is part of the infrastructure built to intensify post-9/11 mass surveillance. Our report from 2023 outlines how: -ICE has built a comprehensive database on a vast swathe of U.S. residents. -It has contracted with data brokers to track citizens and noncitizens alike. [1/4]

When seen as a percentage of each country’s peak deployment, British and Canadian troops put their lives at risk at twice the rate of American troops in Afghanistan. www.cnn.com/2026/01/23/w...

Bone sampling detected uranium in the bones of 29% of study participants in Fallujah, while lead was detected in 100% of participants’ samples. Researchers have never before detected uranium in bones in living populations.

As of 2024, there were 950 lobbyists hired by the arms industry. That’s 220 more than in 2020. costsofwar.watson.brown.edu/paper/profit...

On average, the Pentagon receives 200 requests for “assistance” from Hollywood movie and TV studios each year. Of these, it “assists” – or influences – roughly seven feature film projects and approximately 93 smaller film and TV projects per year.

In an 1967 speech, Martin Luther King Jr. decried a "society gone mad on war," highlighting how U.S. military involvement in Vietnam eviscerated anti-poverty programs at home. www.thirteen.org/blog-post/ma...

Reminder: Babies and children under 5 are the most vulnerable to the ongoing and indirect impacts of war. www.theguardian.com/world/2026/j...

The U.S. post-9/11 wars have forcibly displaced at least 38 million people. This exceeds those displaced by every war since 1900, except World War II. [1/3]

More than 100 children have been killed since the ceasefire in Gaza, according to UNICEF. www.unicef.org/press-releas...

"A war paradigm does not provide an effective solution to the problem of terror attacks." Costs of War director Stephanie Savell on the failed counterterrorism model in Africa in @theintercept.com. theintercept.com/2026/01/11/v...

As the U.S. considers military action against Iran, it's worth noting the human costs of the post-9/11 wars in Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere: Including indirect deaths, an estimated 4.5 million people have been killed. [1/2] costsofwar.watson.brown.edu/papers/how-d....

DHS was a post-9/11 creation with the mandate to fight "terrorism," and creating and placing ICE in that agency has meant that immigrants are framed as inherently suspicious terrorists-to-be, requiring militarism and force.

Expanding and vague definitions of terrorism used by the U.S. officials are one cost of the post-9/11 wars. [1/2] www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/1/...

In light of U.S.-backed regime change in Venezuela, Costs of War contributor William Hartung reminds us that the post-9/11 wars were supposed to be "cheap" and "easy" — but they ended up costing $8 trillion and countless lives. www.star-telegram.com/opinion/us-v...

During the five years from 2020 to 2024, the U.S. government invested over twice as much money in five weapons companies as in diplomacy and international assistance. costsofwar.watson.brown.edu/paper/profit...

Costs of War co-founder @cathylutz.bsky.social talks to @reedgalen.bsky.social about how popular opinion is against forever wars. “Popular opinion is one thing, but it’s when that popular opinion gets mobilized that we have any hope of something changing.” www.youtube.com/watch?v=K9GE...

As European leaders meet to respond to the Trump administration's threats over Greenland, it's worth remembering the significant costs of the U.S. post-9/11 wars borne by its European allies. [1/2] www.theguardian.com/world/2026/j...

High Pentagon spending has boosted inequality and paved the way for authoritarianism, writes Costs of War co-founder @cathylutz.bsky.social and @lutzfernandez.bsky.social. www.commondreams.org/opinion/auth...

As the U.S. pursues regime change in Venezuela, it's worth remembering that the U.S.-led post-9/11 wars left millions dead and cost U.S. taxpayers trillions, with no strategic benefit to the citizens of the U.S. or any other nation. www.wsj.com/world/americ...

We are devastated by this weekend's senseless violence on the Brown University campus. As we mourn the deaths of two students, we share the terror and grief of the entire Brown community, the deep concern for those who were injured, and the sorrow for their families and friends.

Reminder: The Pentagon has never passed an audit. www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...

In 2024, global military spending had its steepest annual rise since 1992, according to new data from @sipri.org. Reuters reports on the record revenues for the weapons industry, citing our research with @quincyinst.bsky.social. www.reuters.com/graphics/BUS...

In 2024, at least 61% of the discretionary budget went towards military-related spending.

Join DismantleTheMic.org on Dec. 11 at 6pm ET for a webinar on stopping the war machine, featuring Julian Aguon, Brittany DeBarros and Costs of War contributor William Hartung. Register: tinyurl.com/StopWarMachine

The Trump administration's drone strikes in the Caribbean are "less of an aberration and more of a continuation and intensification of the War on Terror," notes our forthcoming contributor @elizabethrb.bsky.social in @inkstickmedia.com. inkstickmedia.com/the-war-on-t...

The Trump administration is reportedly considering ground operations in Venezuela to fight "terrorism". If Afghanistan and Iraq are any indicator, these actions will likely harm countless civilians. [1/3] www.cnn.com/2025/11/27/p...

Costs of War co-founder @cathylutz.bsky.social on why now is the time to question the "military normal": substack.com/home/post/p-...

Records show that Raytheon was allowed to claim about half a million dollars in tax refunds for jobs it did not create, reports @inkstickmedia.com and Carolina Public Press. inkstick.substack.com/p/exclusive-...

The connections between play, patriotism and war run deep. Our latest cultural analysis looks at the militarization of toys. [THREAD]

The Trump administration halted special immigrant visas from Afghanistan after a former member of one of Afghanistan's CIA-backed units was accused of shooting two U.S. National Guard soldiers in Washington, D.C. [1/2] www.reuters.com/world/us/us-...