🔗 Share this article

A wave of US and Israeli airstrikes has reportedly eliminated or harmed a minimum of 11 Iranian naval vessels starting Saturday, freshly analyzed orbital imagery show, with missile bases and enrichment plants also sustaining hits.

Pictures of the southern Konarak naval naval base and the Bandar Abbas facility, which is located on the strategic Hormuz Strait and houses the headquarters of the Iranian navy, show plumes of smoke rising from multiple ships on Monday and Tuesday.

Maritime Forces Incurred Substantial Damage

Included in the vessels destroyed was the IRINS Makran, Iran's most sizable ship which had functioned as a drone carrier. Satellite images displayed dark plumes rising from the vessel which had been stationed at the Bandar Abbas base.

Analytical assessments suggest that no fewer than five ships at Bandar Abbas were "hit or sunk". Pictures of the southern end of the port depict smoke emanating from the Makran, while another pair of ships appear to be harmed, with a single one visibly ablaze.

Over at the Konarak base, images display several damaged ships, with intelligence reports pointing to impacts on six ships. Images taken on Monday also show that multiple buildings at the base have been demolished.

"For many years the Iran's leadership has harassed global maritime traffic," a senior US military official said. "Now, there is not one Iranian ship at sea in the Persian Gulf, Hormuz Strait or Sea of Oman, and we will persist."

A number of ships reportedly destroyed may have been concealed in aerial photos by haze or plumes, or hit in open waters, and have yet to be fully confirmed. Separate reports stated that one Iranian ship was going down near Sri Lankan territorial waters, leading to a rescue operation.

Rocket Bases and Atomic Locations Targeted

The destruction of Tehran's launch facilities and the prevention of nuclear weapons development were stated as further goals of the air campaign. Satellite images also revealed strikes on the southerly Khorgu base and northwestern Tabriz missile bases, and at the Konarak air base, where missile storage facilities and bunkers were struck.

Over at the Choqa Balk-e drone UAV facility to the west of the city of Kermanshah, widespread destruction was seen to storage buildings, bunkers and UAV launching apparatus.

Damage was also observed at a radar installation at the Zahedan airbase in eastern Iran, close to the frontier with Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Of particular note, the most recent series of attacks have reportedly targeted installations at the Natanz complex – widely believed to be at the heart of Iran's nuclear programme. The UN's atomic energy body commented that the damaged structures were used for entry to the site's underground nuclear plant and that "no release of radioactive material" was anticipated.

Broader Impact and Assessment

Military analysts stated that the attacks appeared to have "greatly reduced" the Iran's naval ability to carry out conventional attacks using its largest vessels. But, it was stressed that Tehran maintains the option to launch asymmetric warfare at sea through the use of drones, mini-submarines and its so-called "ghost fleet" of oil ships.

The total extent of the destruction caused to Iran's defense facilities is still uncertain, with hostilities said to be continuing. Photos also reveals widespread destruction to the main offices of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in the city of Tehran.

Numerous of public facilities also are reported to have been damaged in the capital and across the country since the fighting started. Reports of deaths from ground sources state that a high number of non-combatants may have been fatally injured in the attacks.

As the situation develops, monitoring of space-based data will carry on to track the changing battlefield picture.