Senator Chris Murphy visited Qatar and Saudi Arabia to assess damage from Iranian drone strikes on US interests, finding extensive destruction at the embassy in Riyadh that could have led to significant American casualties had it occurred during daylight hours. In Qatar, he reported reduced liquefied natural gas production due to halted operations at Ras Laffan, with 17% of exports potentially lost for up to three years. Murphy accused Pentagon Secretary Pete Hegseth of trying to hide the war's costs from Congress and the public by restricting access to military bases and information.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-10-08,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
Chris Murphy, a Connecticut Democrat senator, claims that the Pentagon blocked him from visiting a major US base in Qatar but allowed him to see damage at the US embassy in Saudi Arabia caused by Iranian attacks. He described the destruction as more severe than previously disclosed and stated that if similar strikes occurred during daylight hours, many Americans would have been killed.
Murphy accused Pentagon Secretary Pete Hegseth of attempting to conceal the costs and consequences of the ongoing conflict from the American public. He warned that if Democrats win control of Congress in next month’s midterm elections, he will push for accountability and investigations into war spending. The senator also suggested that should the conflict continue through early next year, Congress might withhold defense funding unless a provision to end the war is included.
Written for “Iran War Costs Debate” on 2026-10-09,
grounded in this article and the 0 other(s) covering the same event.
Why this leaning score
The model judged this article politically coded and scored it -0.35, but all 2 of its quote(s) are attributed speech - words the article quotes from someone, not the article's own narration, so the score is not published.
Written under an earlier scoring contract, which gave a paragraph
rather than checkable quotes. Re-analysing this article replaces it.
Leaning score withheld for article 66925: attributed speech only · logged 2026-10-08
The US senator Chris Murphy said the Pentagon blocked him from a major US base in Qatar, yet saw enough damage on the US embassy in Saudi Arabia to conclude that an Iranian strike would have been deadly had it happened during the day.
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it → say → day
The Connecticut Democrat, who sits on the Senate foreign relations and appropriations committees, described the destruction he witnessed in Riyadh as “extraordinary” and much more damaging than the public has been led to believe.
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public → sit → Riyadh
“Had that attack happened during the daytime, there’s no doubt that there would have been many, many Americans killed,” he told reporters on a call after returning from Qatar and Saudi Arabia.
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he → happen → Qatar
He also accused the Pentagon of trying to prevent Congress from seeing the costs of the war first-hand, saying the Pentagon secretary, Pete Hegseth, was “determined to hide the cost and the consequences of this war from the American public”.
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secretary → accuse → public
Two drones hit the compound in the early hours of 3 March, days after the US and Israel launched the war on 28 February, setting off a fire and sending black smoke over the district.
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US → hit → district
The building was reportedly empty at the time and no injuries were reported.
uncertain
injuries → report → time
Saudi Arabia’s defense ministry initially described the damage as minor.
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ministry → describe → damage
But, according to Murphy, the drones caused extensive damage across several floors.
uncertain
drones → accord → floors
The strike, he explained, hit “an area of the embassy in which there are a lot of people” and said that “part of that space is uninhabitable and will likely remain uninhabitable”.
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part → explain → space
Murphy said some of it would not be repaired because the embassy is moving soon.
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embassy → say → it
In Qatar, the senator visited Ras Laffan, the gas complex where Iranian drone strikes halted LNG (liquefied natural gas) production early in the war.
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strikes → visit → war
Murphy said 17% of Qatar’s exports had been eliminated, probably for at least three years of repairs.
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% → say → repairs
He also said he saw just one LNG tanker in port, compared with the usual six, and about one a day leaving rather than 10.
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he → say → 10
Murphy said the Pentagon blocked him from seeing more.
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Pentagon → say → more
He said he gave notice of his visit weeks in advance and submitted a written request for access to Al Udeid air base, the largest US military installation in the region.
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he → say → region
He also said he raised it with Admiral Brad Cooper, the commander of the US Central Command, who appeared surprised that military leaders had also been barred from speaking to him.
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leaders → say → him
On arrival, Murphy said, he was told he would not have access to the base and no contact with military leadership.
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he → say → leadership
In response, a senior Pentagon official told the Guardian that Murphy’s office “was informed before his trip” that he would not receive department support to access Ul Udeid air base, as per Hegseth’s 3 March directive on travel restrictions in the region.
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he → tell → region
“That decision was communicated in advance by the office of the secretary of war for legislative affairs,” the official said in a statement.
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official → communicate → statement
“The department applies the secretary’s guidance evenly.”
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department → apply → guidance
Murphy said he would draft language in the coming days requiring the Pentagon to give members of Congress access to overseas bases, which he would seek to include in next year’s appropriations and defense authorization bills.
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he → say → bills
If the war is still going by early next year, he said Congress should withhold defense funding unless it includes a provision to end the conflict, and vowed accountability and investigations if Democrats win one or both chambers in next month’s midterm elections.
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Democrats → go → elections
The administration, he said, was “giving its middle finger to the Congress, pretending as if we are totally irrelevant”.
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we → say → Congress
“We will potentially have power of both the House and the Senate,” Murphy said of Democrats, “and we should make the end of the war a priority.”
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end → have → war
The Aporia
