Orbital Pictures Show Iranian Naval Forces and Nuclear Sites Struck by Joint US and Israeli Attacks.
A series of US and Israeli airstrikes has reportedly sunk or crippled at least 11 warships belonging to Iran since the weekend, recently obtained aerial photos show, with launch facilities and nuclear sites also coming under fire.
Pictures of the southern Konarak military port and the Bandar Abbas installation, which sits on the strategic Hormuz Strait and contains the headquarters of the Iranian navy, reveal plumes of smoke rising from a number of ships on Monday and Tuesday.
Maritime Fleet Sustained Significant Losses
Among the ships sunk was the Makran, Iran's biggest warship which had functioned as a drone carrier. Orbital photos displayed dark plumes pouring from the ship which had been docked at the Bandar Abbas naval base.
Analytical reports state that no fewer than five ships at Bandar Abbas were "struck or destroyed". Imagery of the southern part of the port reveal plumes ascending from the Makran, while two other ships seem to be impacted, with one clearly on fire.
Over at the Konarak base, photos show multiple stricken ships, with analysis identifying damage to six ships. Pictures taken on Monday also demonstrate that several structures at the base have been demolished.
"For many years the Tehran government has harassed global maritime traffic," the head of US Central Command declared. "Now, there is not a single vessel from Iran underway in the Persian Gulf, Strait of Hormuz or Sea of Oman, and we will not stop."
Some vessels allegedly sunk may have been obscured in satellite images by cloud or smoke, or targeted offshore, and have not been conclusively proven. Other accounts suggested that one Iranian ship was going down off the coast of Sri Lanka's waters, resulting in a rescue operation.
Missile Installations and Atomic Facilities Attacked
Eliminating Iranian missile bases and the prevention of nuclear weapons development were declared as further aims of the offensive. Satellite images also showed damage at the southern Khorgu base and northwestern Tabriz missile bases, and at the Konarak base, where weapons bunkers and bunkers were struck.
At the Choqa Balk-e drone unmanned aircraft site west of the city of Kermanshah, widespread damage was observed to warehouses, bunkers and unmanned aircraft systems.
Damage was also noted at a radar installation at the Zahedan airbase in eastern Iran, near the border with Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Perhaps most notably, the most recent series of attacks have apparently focused on facilities at the Natanz complex – widely believed to be at the heart of the country's nuclear programme. A global monitoring agency said that the affected buildings were used for access to the facility's below-ground nuclear plant and that "no release of radioactive material" was anticipated.
Wider Fallout and Assessment
Observers indicated that the strikes appeared to have "largely neutralized" the Iran's naval capability to carry out standard operations using its most significant vessels. Nevertheless, it was noted that Tehran retains the option to launch unconventional attacks at sea through the use of drones, small submarines and its so-called "ghost fleet" of tankers.
The full scale of the destruction caused to Iran's defense infrastructure remains unclear, with attacks reportedly persisting. Photos also indicates considerable destruction to the main offices of the the IRGC in the city of Tehran.
Numerous of non-military structures also appear to have been hit in the capital and throughout the country since the fighting began. Casualty figures from inside Iran state that a high number of non-combatants may have been fatally injured in the bombardment.
As the situation develops, analysis of satellite imagery will continue to track the unfolding battlefield picture.