Satellite Photographs Show Iranian Navy and Nuclear Facilities Damaged by US-Israeli Attacks.
Multiple joint airstrikes has reportedly destroyed or damaged no fewer than 11 warships belonging to Iran starting Saturday, freshly analyzed aerial photos reveal, with rocket sites and nuclear sites also being targeted.
Pictures of the southern Konarak naval naval base and the Bandar Abbas installation, which overlooks the strategic Hormuz Strait and houses the headquarters of the Iranian navy, show black smoke pouring from several ships on the start of the week.
Maritime Forces Sustained Major Damage
Among the vessels destroyed was the IRINS Makran, Iran's biggest warship which had functioned as a drone carrier. Orbital photos showed thick smoke emanating from the ship which had been moored at the Bandar Abbas base.
Analytical reports state that at least a quintet of warships at the port were "hit or sunk". Pictures of the southern end of the port reveal smoke rising from the Makran, while additional ships seem to be harmed, with one visibly ablaze.
Over at the Konarak base, images show numerous stricken ships, with intelligence reports pointing to damage to six ships. Images taken on Monday also indicate that multiple facilities at the base have been leveled.
"For a long time the Iranian regime has disrupted international shipping," an American commander said. "At present, there is no Iranian ship underway in the Persian Gulf, Hormuz Strait or Gulf of Oman, and we will continue."
A number of vessels allegedly destroyed may have been hidden in aerial photos by haze or plumes, or struck at sea, and have not been independently verified. Additional information suggested that an Iranian vessel was foundering near Sri Lanka's waters, resulting in a rescue operation.
Missile Installations and Atomic Locations Attacked
The destruction of Iranian missile bases and the prevention of atomic bomb programs were declared as further goals of the offensive. Aerial imagery also revealed impacts against the southern Khorgu base and north-western Tabriz missile missile bases, and at the Konarak air air base, where rocket warehouses and bunkers were targeted.
At the Choqa Balk-e drone UAV facility west of Kermanshah, widespread destruction was identified to warehouses, underground facilities and drone launch equipment.
Destruction was also observed at a radar installation at the Zahedan airbase military airport in eastern Iran, near the border with Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Significantly, the new round of strikes have apparently targeted sites at Natanz – considered at the core of the country's nuclear programme. A global monitoring agency said that the damaged structures were used for access to the site's below-ground enrichment facility and that "no radiological consequence" was anticipated.
Wider Fallout and Analysis
Defense experts stated that the offensive appeared to have "significantly degraded" the Iranian navy's capability to sustain standard operations using its most significant warships. But, it was stressed that Iran maintains the ability to launch asymmetric warfare at sea through the use of drones, mini-submarines and its so-called "shadow fleet" of tankers.
The total scope of the destruction caused to Iranian military infrastructure remains unclear, with attacks said to be ongoing. Pictures also shows considerable destruction to the headquarters of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in the city of Tehran.
A large number of non-military structures also are reported to have been damaged in the capital and throughout Iran after the hostilities escalated. Toll estimates from inside Iran suggest that hundreds of civilians may have been fatally injured in the bombardment.
Amid continuing hostilities, review of aerial photographs will carry on to assess the unfolding scope of damage.