Orbital Pictures Indicate Iranian Naval Forces and Atomic Facilities Hit by US-Israeli Strikes.
A series of joint airstrikes has allegedly destroyed or damaged no fewer than eleven Iranian naval vessels starting the weekend, recently obtained aerial photos show, with launch facilities and nuclear sites also sustaining hits.
Photographs of the southerly Konarak military port and the Bandar Abbas facility, which is located on the Strait of Hormuz and houses the main command of the Iranian navy, depict plumes of smoke rising from several ships on recent days.
Maritime Assets Sustained Major Damage
Among the vessels destroyed was the IRINS Makran, the country's most sizable ship which had functioned as a unmanned aerial vehicle platform. Satellite images displayed dark plumes emanating from the ship which had been docked at the Bandar Abbas base.
Analytical assessments suggest that no fewer than five vessels at Bandar Abbas were "hit or sunk". Pictures of the south end of the port show plumes ascending from the Makran, while another pair of vessels appear to be harmed, with one of them visibly ablaze.
Over at the Konarak base, photos reveal several stricken vessels, with expert review identifying strikes against a half-dozen warships. Pictures from Monday also indicate that a number of buildings at the installation have been leveled.
"For a long time the Iran's leadership has harassed global maritime traffic," an American commander stated. "At present, there is not a single Iranian ship underway in the Arabian Gulf, Strait of Hormuz or Sea of Oman, and we will not stop."
A number of vessels allegedly sunk may have been concealed in aerial photos by weather conditions or battle damage, or targeted offshore, and have yet to be fully confirmed. Separate reports indicated that an Iranian vessel was going down off the coast of Sri Lanka's waters, prompting a search and rescue mission.
Rocket Installations and Atomic Locations Hit
Neutralizing Iranian missile bases and the prevention of nuclear weapons development were stated as additional aims of the offensive. Aerial imagery also depicted damage at the southern Khorgu base and northwestern Tabriz missile bases, and at the Konarak air air base, where rocket warehouses and fortifications were struck.
Over at the Choqa Balk-e drone unmanned aircraft site to the west of Kermanshah, extensive damage was observed to warehouses, bunkers and UAV launching apparatus.
Damage was also seen at a radar site at the Zahedan airbase military airport in eastern parts of the country, close to the frontier with Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Significantly, the new round of attacks have apparently targeted sites at Natanz – long said to be at the center of the country's atomic program. The UN's atomic energy body stated that the affected structures were used for access to the site's underground nuclear plant and that "no nuclear fallout" was expected.
Wider Fallout and Analysis
Observers indicated that the attacks appeared to have "greatly reduced" the Iran's naval ability to sustain conventional attacks using its biggest warships. Nevertheless, it was stressed that Tehran retains the option to launch irregular strikes at sea through the use of unmanned aerial vehicles, midget subs and its so-called "ghost fleet" of tankers.
The full scale of the destruction caused to Iran's defense facilities remains unclear, with attacks reportedly continuing. Photos also indicates widespread damage to the headquarters of the the IRGC in the capital Tehran.
Numerous of public facilities also appear to have been hit in the capital and throughout Iran since the conflict started. Reports of deaths from inside Iran state that hundreds of civilians may have been killed in the bombardment.
With the conflict ongoing, review of satellite imagery will persist to assess the changing military landscape.