Iran seeks compensation as conflict damage mounts

Iran has called for compensation following the damage caused by recent US and Israeli attacks, as diplomatic efforts continue across the region to contain the conflict.

Tehran’s envoy to the United Nations said on Tuesday that five regional countries should contribute to compensation, citing claims that their territories were used to launch attacks on Iran.

The issue is also being framed more broadly. Iranian officials have raised the idea of a compensation mechanism linked to the Strait of Hormuz, potentially involving a tax on ships transiting the waterway.

An early estimate from the government puts total direct and indirect losses at around $270bn since the start of the conflict on February 28. Government spokeswoman Fatemeh Mohajerani shared the figure in an interview with Russia’s RIA Novosti news agency, though no detailed breakdown was provided.

She said compensation had already been discussed during talks between Tehran and Washington held last week in Pakistan, and would remain part of any future negotiations involving the US and regional mediators.

Authorities are still assessing the scale of the damage, which has affected a wide range of infrastructure. Oil and gas facilities, petrochemical sites, and heavy industry plants have been repeatedly targeted, alongside military complexes. Officials say full reconstruction could take years.

Civilian infrastructure has also been impacted. Bridges, ports and rail networks, as well as universities, research centres, power plants and water desalination facilities, have sustained damage. Hospitals, schools and residential areas have also been affected.

At the same time, the government has acknowledged limits to its ability to respond domestically. Mohajerani told state media that “existing economic realities” mean Tehran does not currently have the resources to compensate civilians whose homes were damaged or destroyed.

The aviation sector has been hit as well. According to Maghsoud Asadi Samani, secretary of the Association of Iranian Airlines, around 60 civilian aircraft are no longer operational, including 20 that were completely destroyed.

He said Iran now has roughly 160 passenger aircraft in service, many of them ageing and maintained under constraints linked to long-standing sanctions that have restricted access to parts and technical services.

Airlines have also faced financial losses. Samani said expected revenue during the Nowruz holiday period did not materialise, with total losses exceeding 300 trillion rials (about $190 million) over 40 days of conflict.

Airport infrastructure has been affected in several cities, including Tehran, Tabriz, Urmia and Khorramabad, where runways, control towers and hangars have sustained damage.

Despite the scale of the impact, Iranian officials have indicated that their negotiating position remains unchanged on key issues, including nuclear enrichment. The US naval blockade of Iranian ports, which began earlier this week, has added further pressure to the economic situation.

Ebrahim Rezaei, spokesman for parliament’s National Security and Foreign Policy Commission, said the current two-week ceasefire should not be extended, arguing it could allow opposing forces time to regroup.