Watch Live: Hegseth, Caine testify before Senate panel amid escalating Iran war

Washington — Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, are testifying before a Senate committee Tuesday afternoon amid escalations in the war with Iran in recent days.

With a focus on the Trump administration's supplemental funding request, the hearing comes after at least two U.S. soldiers were killed in an Iranian attack Friday, while another service member died in Iraq during a controlled explosion to destroy an Iranian drone.

The deaths bring the total number of service members killed since the war began in February to 17. Nearly 100 American service members have been injured in multiple Iranian strikes on bases across the Middle East this month, officials told CBS News. Meanwhile, the U.S. carried out a 10th consecutive night of strikes on Iranian military infrastructure Monday, after a ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran collapsed.

Sen. Susan Collins of Maine, the committee chair, recognized the service members as the hearing kicked off, saying they "made the ultimate sacrifice while serving our nation."

Hegseth and Caine last testified about the war at hearings in May, not long after the pair delivered their most recent public briefing to the press. On Tuesday, they're tasked with defending the administration's request for $67 billion for the Pentagon to help cover the cost of the war.

Last month, the administration asked Congress for $88 billion, with the bulk of the funds aimed at covering the cost of the conflict, including $21 billion for munitions, $17.3 billion for operational costs and $12.1 billion for classified programs. The long-anticipated supplemental funding package also included a request for funds for efforts to combat the Ebola outbreak in African countries, along with $11.1 billion for farm aid. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins will testify alongside Hegseth and Caine Tuesday as they make a pitch for the additional funds.

Hegseth and Caine testified before House and Senate Appropriations subcommittees in May as the Pentagon sought $1.5 trillion in the fiscal year 2027 budget proposal. In late April, a defense official testified alongside Hegseth that the war had cost about $25 billion.

The leaders will almost certainly face questions about the latest figures during Tuesday's hearing. Sen. Patty Murray of Washington, the top Democrat on the committee, highlighted the cost of the war for Americans in her opening statement, warning that the conflict is now "spiraling out of control again."

"My colleagues and I cannot and will not support rubber-stamping a request to bankrol