Orbital Pictures Reveal Iranian Navy and Nuclear Sites Damaged by Joint US and Israeli Military Action.
A wave of American and Israeli strikes has allegedly destroyed or damaged a minimum of eleven Iran's navy ships starting the weekend, new satellite images demonstrate, with missile bases and enrichment plants also coming under fire.
Images of the southerly Konarak military port and the Bandar Abbas port installation, which overlooks the Strait of Hormuz and is home to the main command of the Iranian navy, reveal smoke billowing from several ships on Monday and Tuesday.
Naval Fleet Sustained Major Damage
Among the vessels destroyed was the IRINS Makran, Iran's biggest warship which had served as a unmanned aerial vehicle platform. Orbital photos indicated dark plumes pouring from the vessel which had been moored at the Bandar Abbas base.
Intelligence evaluations suggest that at least five ships at the port were "hit or sunk". Imagery of the southern part of the harbor reveal plumes ascending from the IRINS Makran, while additional ships are visibly harmed, with a single one seen burning.
Over at the Konarak base, images reveal multiple stricken ships, with analysis identifying impacts on a half-dozen warships. Images from the start of the week also demonstrate that several structures at the base have been demolished.
"For many years the Iran's leadership has harassed international shipping," the head of US Central Command declared. "Today, there is not a single Iranian vessel operational in the Arabian Gulf, Strait of Hormuz or Gulf of Oman, and we will not stop."
A number of ships allegedly sunk may have been concealed in satellite images by haze or plumes, or targeted offshore, and have yet to be fully confirmed. Separate reports stated that one Iranian ship was sinking near Sri Lankan waters, leading to a rescue operation.
Missile Installations and Atomic Locations Hit
Eliminating Iranian missile bases and the hindering of enrichment activities were listed as additional objectives of the military strikes. Aerial imagery also depicted damage at the southern Khorgu and north-western Tabriz missile facilities, and at the Konarak air air base, where rocket warehouses and fortifications were hit.
At the Choqa Balk-e drone unmanned aircraft site to the west of the city of Kermanshah, extensive damage was identified to warehouses, bunkers and UAV launching apparatus.
Damage was also noted at a radar site at the Zahedan airbase airbase in eastern Iran, near the frontier with Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Significantly, the most recent series of attacks have reportedly hit facilities at the Natanz complex – long said to be at the heart of the country's atomic program. The UN's atomic energy body said that the damaged structures were used for access to the facility's below-ground nuclear plant and that "no radiological consequence" was anticipated.
Wider Impact and Assessment
Defense experts stated that the offensive appeared to have "greatly reduced" the Iran's naval capability to carry out conventional attacks using its biggest warships. But, it was stressed that Tehran retains the capacity to launch irregular strikes at sea through the use of drones, midget subs and its so-called "shadow fleet" of tankers.
The full scale of the damage caused to Iran's defense infrastructure remains unclear, with strikes reportedly persisting. Pictures also shows extensive damage to the headquarters of the the IRGC in the capital Tehran.
A significant number of public facilities also are reported to have been hit in the capital city and throughout Iran since the hostilities started. Toll estimates from ground sources suggest that a high number of non-combatants may have been fatally injured in the bombardment.
With the conflict ongoing, review of space-based data will persist to assess the unfolding scope of damage.