Space-Based Images Show Iran's Navy and Atomic Sites Hit by US-Israeli Airstrikes.
A series of US and Israeli airstrikes has reportedly destroyed or damaged no fewer than 11 warships belonging to Iran since Saturday, freshly analyzed orbital imagery show, with rocket sites and atomic facilities also sustaining hits.
Pictures of the southerly Konarak naval military port and the Bandar Abbas facility, which is located on the Strait of Hormuz and houses the headquarters of the Iran's naval force, show black smoke pouring from a number of vessels on the start of the week.
Maritime Assets Sustained Major Losses
Included in the vessels destroyed was the IRINS Makran, the country's most sizable ship which had served as a drone carrier. Orbital photos indicated black smoke pouring from the ship which had been moored at the Bandar Abbas base.
Analytical evaluations state that no fewer than five ships at the port were "hit or sunk". Imagery of the south end of the port show smoke emanating from the Makran, while additional vessels are visibly impacted, with a single one clearly on fire.
Over at Konarak, photos reveal several damaged ships, with expert review pointing to damage to a half-dozen warships. Images from the start of the week also show that a number of buildings at the base have been demolished.
"For decades the Tehran government has disrupted international shipping," a senior US military official stated. "At present, there is not a single Iranian vessel at sea in the Arabian Gulf, Hormuz Strait or Sea of Oman, and we will not stop."
A number of vessels reportedly sunk may have been concealed in satellite images by haze or plumes, or hit in open waters, and have yet to be fully confirmed. Other accounts indicated that one Iranian ship was sinking off the coast of Sri Lanka's territorial waters, resulting in a search and rescue mission.
Missile Bases and Atomic Facilities Targeted
The destruction of Iran's rocket sites and the stopping nuclear weapons development were declared as further aims of the air campaign. Satellite images also revealed damage at the southerly Khorgu base and north-western Tabriz missile bases, and at the Konarak air base, where weapons bunkers and fortifications were targeted.
Over at the Choqa Balk-e drone UAV facility to the west of the city of Kermanshah, widespread destruction was observed to sheds, underground facilities and UAV launching apparatus.
Destruction was also observed at a surveillance station at the Zahedan airbase in eastern parts of the country, near the frontier with neighboring nations.
Significantly, the new round of attacks have apparently focused on installations at Natanz – long said to be at the core of Iran's nuclear programme. An international watchdog stated that the damaged structures were used for access to the site's below-ground nuclear plant and that "no release of radioactive material" was anticipated.
Wider Fallout and Assessment
Military analysts suggested that the offensive appeared to have "significantly degraded" the Iran's naval ability to carry out traditional warfare using its most significant warships. Nevertheless, it was emphasised that Tehran maintains the ability to launch asymmetric warfare at sea through the use of drones, small submarines and its so-called "shadow fleet" of tankers.
The overall scale of the destruction caused to Iranian military facilities has yet to be fully assessed, with attacks reportedly continuing. Photos also indicates widespread destruction to the command center of the the IRGC in the city of Tehran.
A large number of public facilities also appear to have been hit in the capital and throughout Iran since the hostilities began. Toll estimates from inside Iran state that hundreds of non-combatants may have been killed in the bombardment.
With the conflict ongoing, monitoring of aerial photographs will persist to track the unfolding scope of damage.