Satellite Images Reveal Iran's Navy and Atomic Sites Hit by US-Israeli Military Action.
A series of joint attacks has allegedly eliminated or harmed a minimum of 11 warships belonging to Iran starting the weekend, new aerial photos demonstrate, with rocket sites and enrichment plants also sustaining hits.
Images of the southerly Konarak naval base and the Bandar Abbas installation, which overlooks the Strait of Hormuz and houses the main command of the Iranian navy, depict black smoke pouring from a number of ships on Monday and Tuesday.
Maritime Fleet Incurred Significant Damage
Included in the targets eliminated was the Makran, the country's biggest warship which had functioned as a unmanned aerial vehicle platform. Orbital photos indicated thick smoke emanating from the vessel which had been docked at the Bandar Abbas base.
Intelligence reports indicate that no fewer than five ships at the port were "hit or sunk". Imagery of the southern end of the port reveal smoke rising from the Makran, while additional ships appear to be damaged, with one of them visibly ablaze.
At the Konarak base, photos display several harmed ships, with expert review identifying damage to a half-dozen warships. Photos from Monday also demonstrate that multiple facilities at the base have been demolished.
"For many years the Tehran government has harassed commercial vessels," the head of US Central Command said. "At present, there is no vessel from Iran operational in the Persian Gulf, Strait of Hormuz or Sea of Oman, and we will not stop."
Some vessels reportedly sunk may have been hidden in satellite images by weather conditions or battle damage, or hit in open waters, and have yet to be fully confirmed. Separate reports suggested that a ship from Iran was going down off the coast of Sri Lanka's territorial waters, prompting a search and rescue mission.
Rocket Sites and Nuclear Locations Attacked
The destruction of Iranian missile bases and the hindering of enrichment activities were listed as other aims of the air campaign. Aerial imagery also depicted strikes on the southerly Khorgu base and north-western Tabriz missile facilities, and at the Konarak base, where missile storage facilities and fortifications were targeted.
At the Choqa Balk-e drone base west of the city of Kermanshah, significant damage was identified to storage buildings, underground facilities and unmanned aircraft systems.
Destruction was also observed at a surveillance station at the Zahedan airbase in eastern parts of the country, near the frontier with neighboring nations.
Perhaps most notably, the latest wave of strikes have apparently focused on installations at Natanz – widely believed to be at the core of Iran's nuclear programme. An international watchdog stated that the damaged structures were used for access to the facility's below-ground enrichment facility and that "no release of radioactive material" was expected.
Wider Impact and Assessment
Military analysts stated that the offensive appeared to have "significantly degraded" the Iranian navy's capacity to carry out standard operations using its most significant warships. But, it was stressed that Iran still has the capacity to launch asymmetric warfare at sea through the use of unmanned aerial vehicles, midget subs and its so-called "ghost fleet" of oil ships.
The total scale of the destruction caused to Iran's defense facilities remains unclear, with hostilities said to be persisting. Imagery also reveals considerable damage to the headquarters of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in the capital Tehran.
Numerous of civilian buildings also seem to have been damaged in the capital and throughout the country since the conflict started. Casualty figures from ground sources indicate that hundreds of civilians may have been lost their lives in the strikes.
As the situation develops, analysis of aerial photographs will carry on to assess the evolving military landscape.