Orbital Images Depict Iranian Navy and Atomic Locations Struck by American and Israeli Attacks.
Multiple US and Israeli airstrikes has reportedly eliminated or harmed no fewer than 11 Iran's navy ships since Saturday, new aerial photos show, with launch facilities and enrichment plants also coming under fire.
Photographs of the southerly Konarak naval military port and the Bandar Abbas installation, which overlooks the Strait of Hormuz and houses the main command of the Iranian navy, reveal smoke billowing from multiple warships on recent days.
Maritime Assets Incurred Significant Damage
Included in the ships sunk was the IRINS Makran, the country's biggest warship which had been used as a unmanned aerial vehicle platform. Orbital photos indicated thick smoke emanating from the ship which had been moored at the Bandar Abbas naval base.
Intelligence assessments state that at least five vessels at the port were "struck or destroyed". Photos of the southern end of the port depict smoke emanating from the Makran, while two other vessels are visibly impacted, with one seen burning.
At Konarak, photos display several stricken ships, with expert review pointing to strikes against six ships. Photos taken on Monday also demonstrate that a number of facilities at the installation have been leveled.
"For decades the Iran's leadership has harassed global maritime traffic," the head of US Central Command said. "Today, there is not a single vessel from Iran at sea in the Persian Gulf, Strait of Hormuz or Gulf of Oman, and we will continue."
A number of ships allegedly sunk may have been obscured in satellite images by weather conditions or battle damage, or hit in open waters, and have not been conclusively proven. Separate reports stated that an Iranian vessel was going down near Sri Lanka's territorial waters, resulting in a rescue operation.
Missile Installations and Atomic Locations Hit
Neutralizing Tehran's launch facilities and the prevention of nuclear weapons development were listed as additional objectives of the offensive. Aerial imagery also depicted damage at the southerly Khorgu and north-western Tabriz missile facilities, and at the Konarak air base, where missile storage facilities and fortifications were hit.
At the Choqa Balk-e drone unmanned aircraft site to the west of Kermanshah, widespread destruction was identified to warehouses, underground facilities and UAV launching apparatus.
Damage was also seen at a radar installation at the Zahedan airbase in eastern parts of the country, close to the frontier with neighboring nations.
Significantly, the new round of attacks have reportedly focused on installations at Natanz – considered at the core of the country's enrichment efforts. An international watchdog commented that the affected buildings were used for access to the site's below-ground nuclear plant and that "no nuclear fallout" was anticipated.
Wider Fallout and Assessment
Observers stated that the strikes appeared to have "largely neutralized" the Iranian navy's capacity to carry out traditional warfare using its biggest vessels. Nevertheless, it was noted that Iran still has the option to launch asymmetric warfare at sea through the use of unmanned aerial vehicles, mini-submarines and its so-called "clandestine network" of oil ships.
The full scope of the destruction caused to Iranian military facilities is still uncertain, with hostilities said to be ongoing. Imagery also shows widespread destruction to the main offices of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in the city of Tehran.
A significant number of non-military structures also appear to have been struck in the capital and across the country since the hostilities escalated. Reports of deaths from ground sources suggest that many hundreds of non-combatants may have been lost their lives in the strikes.
As the situation develops, monitoring of space-based data will persist to track the changing scope of damage.