Satellite Photographs Depict Iran's Navy and Atomic Locations Struck by Joint US and Israeli Military Action.
Multiple US and Israeli attacks has reportedly eliminated or harmed a minimum of eleven warships belonging to Iran since Saturday, freshly analyzed satellite images show, with missile bases and atomic facilities also being targeted.
Photographs of the southern Konarak naval naval base and the Bandar Abbas installation, which sits on the Strait of Hormuz and is home to the main command of the Iranian navy, depict smoke billowing from several vessels on Monday and Tuesday.
Naval Assets Sustained Major Losses
Among the ships sunk was the IRINS Makran, the country's most sizable ship which had been used as a drone carrier. Aerial imagery showed dark plumes rising from the vessel which had been stationed at the Bandar Abbas base.
Intelligence evaluations indicate that at least five vessels at Bandar Abbas were "hit or sunk". Imagery of the southern part of the harbor reveal smoke rising from the Makran, while additional ships appear to be impacted, with one of them visibly ablaze.
At the Konarak base, images show multiple stricken vessels, with intelligence reports pointing to damage to six ships. Photos from the start of the week also indicate that multiple facilities at the installation have been destroyed.
"For a long time the Tehran government has harassed commercial vessels," the head of US Central Command declared. "Now, there is not a single Iranian vessel operational in the Persian Gulf, Hormuz Strait or Sea of Oman, and we will continue."
A number of ships reportedly destroyed may have been hidden in aerial photos by weather conditions or battle damage, or hit in open waters, and have not been conclusively proven. Additional information suggested that a ship from Iran was going down near Sri Lanka's territorial waters, prompting a search and rescue mission.
Missile Sites and Atomic Facilities Targeted
The destruction of Tehran's launch facilities and the prevention of atomic bomb programs were declared as other objectives of the offensive. Aerial imagery also depicted impacts against the southerly Khorgu and north-western Tabriz missile bases, and at the Konarak air base, where missile storage facilities and bunkers were struck.
Over at the Choqa Balk-e drone unmanned aircraft site to the west of the city of Kermanshah, significant destruction was seen to sheds, bunkers and UAV launching apparatus.
Destruction was also seen at a radar installation at the Zahedan military airport in eastern Iran, close to the border with neighboring nations.
Perhaps most notably, the most recent series of attacks have reportedly focused on installations at the Natanz complex – long said to be at the heart of the country's atomic program. A global monitoring agency commented that the damaged buildings were used for access to the facility's below-ground nuclear plant and that "no nuclear fallout" was expected.
Wider Consequences and Assessment
Defense experts indicated that the attacks appeared to have "largely neutralized" the Iran's naval ability to conduct standard operations using its biggest warships. But, it was noted that Iran still has the option to launch asymmetric warfare at sea through the use of drones, midget subs and its so-called "shadow fleet" of tankers.
The total scale of the damage caused to Iranian military infrastructure is still uncertain, with strikes said to be continuing. Imagery also reveals extensive destruction to the main offices of the Iran's Revolutionary Guards in the capital Tehran.
Numerous of civilian buildings also appear to have been struck in the capital and throughout Iran after the fighting started. Toll estimates from ground sources state that a high number of non-combatants may have been lost their lives in the bombardment.
As the situation develops, analysis of satellite imagery will carry on to assess the changing battlefield picture.