Aerial Imagery Indicate Iranian Naval Forces and Nuclear Sites Hit by US-Israeli Attacks.
Multiple joint attacks has reportedly sunk or crippled no fewer than 11 warships belonging to Iran starting Saturday, recently obtained aerial photos show, with missile bases and nuclear sites also coming under fire.
Images of the southern Konarak naval base and the Bandar Abbas facility, which is located on the Strait of Hormuz and contains the headquarters of the Iran's naval force, show smoke billowing from multiple ships on Monday and Tuesday.
Naval Fleet Incurred Substantial Damage
Among the vessels destroyed was the IRINS Makran, the country's most sizable ship which had been used as a drone carrier. Satellite images showed thick smoke pouring from the vessel which had been docked at the Bandar Abbas base.
Intelligence evaluations indicate that at least five vessels at Bandar Abbas were "damaged or eliminated". Photos of the southern end of the harbor depict smoke emanating from the Makran, while additional vessels appear to be harmed, with one seen burning.
Over at Konarak, images reveal numerous damaged vessels, with intelligence reports pointing to damage to six vessels. Images taken on the start of the week also indicate that a number of facilities at the base have been leveled.
"For decades the Iran's leadership has harassed global maritime traffic," the head of US Central Command said. "At present, there is not a single vessel from Iran operational in the Arabian Gulf, Strait of Hormuz or Gulf of Oman, and we will continue."
A number of ships allegedly destroyed may have been obscured in satellite images by haze or plumes, or targeted offshore, and have yet to be fully confirmed. Additional information suggested that a ship from Iran was going down off the coast of Sri Lanka's territorial waters, leading to a rescue operation.
Rocket Bases and Nuclear Locations Targeted
Neutralizing Tehran's launch facilities and the stopping enrichment activities were listed as additional goals of the air campaign. Satellite images also revealed damage at the southerly Khorgu and northwestern Tabriz missile bases, and at the Konarak base, where rocket warehouses and fortifications were struck.
At the Choqa Balk-e drone unmanned aircraft site to the west of Kermanshah, significant destruction was observed to sheds, bunkers and drone launch equipment.
Damage was also seen at a radar site at the Zahedan airbase airbase in eastern Iran, near the frontier with neighboring nations.
Significantly, the new round of attacks have reportedly targeted sites at the Natanz complex – widely believed to be at the heart of Iran's atomic program. The UN's atomic energy body stated that the affected structures were used for entry to the site's below-ground nuclear plant and that "no radiological consequence" was expected.
Wider Impact and Assessment
Defense experts stated that the strikes appeared to have "greatly reduced" the Iran's naval capability to sustain conventional attacks using its largest vessels. Nevertheless, it was stressed that Tehran maintains the capacity to launch irregular strikes at sea through the use of drones, mini-submarines and its so-called "ghost fleet" of tankers.
The overall scope of the destruction caused to Iranian military infrastructure remains unclear, with hostilities said to be persisting. Photos also indicates considerable destruction to the headquarters of the Iran's Revolutionary Guards in the capital Tehran.
A significant number of non-military structures also seem to have been damaged in the capital city and across the country after the hostilities escalated. Toll estimates from inside Iran indicate that hundreds of civilians may have been killed in the strikes.
Amid continuing hostilities, monitoring of space-based data will continue to assess the evolving military landscape.