Orbital Imagery Show Iran's Navy and Atomic Sites Hit by US-Israeli Airstrikes.
A series of US and Israeli strikes has reportedly destroyed or damaged no fewer than 11 Iranian naval vessels since Saturday, new orbital imagery demonstrate, with launch facilities and nuclear sites also being targeted.
Photographs of the southern Konarak naval naval base and the Bandar Abbas port installation, which overlooks the Strait of Hormuz and contains the headquarters of the Iran's naval force, depict black smoke pouring from several ships on recent days.
Naval Forces Incurred Major Damage
Among the ships sunk was the IRINS Makran, Iran's most sizable ship which had served as a drone carrier. Satellite images showed thick smoke rising from the ship which had been docked at the Bandar Abbas base.
Intelligence assessments suggest that at least five vessels at the port were "hit or sunk". Imagery of the southern end of the harbor show smoke rising from the Makran, while another pair of ships are visibly damaged, with a single one visibly ablaze.
Over at Konarak, images display multiple stricken ships, with expert review pointing to damage to six vessels. Pictures from the start of the week also indicate that multiple structures at the installation have been demolished.
"For decades the Iran's leadership has harassed commercial vessels," the head of US Central Command said. "Today, there is not one vessel from Iran operational in the Arabian Gulf, Strait of Hormuz or Gulf of Oman, and we will not stop."
A number of vessels allegedly destroyed may have been hidden in aerial photos by haze or plumes, or hit in open waters, and have not been conclusively proven. Additional information indicated that an Iranian vessel was going down near Sri Lanka's territorial waters, leading to a rescue operation.
Rocket Installations and Atomic Locations Hit
The destruction of Tehran's launch facilities and the stopping atomic bomb programs were declared as additional goals of the offensive. Satellite images also depicted impacts against the southern Khorgu and north-western Tabriz missile missile bases, and at the Konarak air base, where rocket warehouses and bunkers were targeted.
Over at the Choqa Balk-e drone base west of Kermanshah, significant damage was seen to sheds, underground facilities and drone launch equipment.
Damage was also observed at a radar site at the Zahedan airbase airbase in eastern Iran, near the border with neighboring nations.
Of particular note, the new round of strikes have reportedly hit facilities at the Natanz complex – long said to be at the core of the country's atomic program. A global monitoring agency commented that the affected buildings were used for access to the facility's underground nuclear plant and that "no radiological consequence" was likely.
Broader Impact and Assessment
Observers indicated that the offensive appeared to have "significantly degraded" the Iran's naval capability to sustain standard operations using its largest vessels. Nevertheless, it was emphasised that Iran still has the capacity to launch irregular strikes at sea through the use of unmanned aerial vehicles, small submarines and its so-called "ghost fleet" of oil ships.
The total scale of the damage caused to Iranian military infrastructure is still uncertain, with attacks said to be ongoing. Pictures also indicates widespread destruction to the command center of the Iran's Revolutionary Guards in the city of Tehran.
A significant number of non-military structures also appear to have been damaged in the capital and across the country after the conflict began. Casualty figures from ground sources indicate that a high number of civilians may have been killed in the bombardment.
As the situation develops, review of space-based data will carry on to document the unfolding scope of damage.