🔗 Share this article

Multiple joint airstrikes has allegedly eliminated or harmed at least eleven warships belonging to Iran since Saturday, freshly analyzed orbital imagery reveal, with launch facilities and nuclear sites also being targeted.

Pictures of the southerly Konarak military port and the Bandar Abbas facility, which overlooks the Strait of Hormuz and houses the main command of the Iranian navy, reveal smoke billowing from multiple warships on recent days.

Naval Assets Sustained Substantial Losses

Included in the targets eliminated was the Makran, the country's biggest warship which had served as a unmanned aerial vehicle platform. Satellite images indicated thick smoke emanating from the vessel which had been docked at the Bandar Abbas naval base.

Intelligence reports state that at least five vessels at the port were "damaged or eliminated". Photos of the southern end of the port reveal smoke emanating from the Makran, while two other vessels seem to be damaged, with one of them clearly on fire.

At the Konarak base, photos display several harmed vessels, with intelligence reports pointing to impacts on a half-dozen warships. Photos from Monday also show that a number of buildings at the installation have been destroyed.

"For decades the Iran's leadership has threatened global maritime traffic," the head of US Central Command said. "At present, there is not a single Iranian vessel underway in the Arabian Gulf, Hormuz Strait or Gulf of Oman, and we will continue."

A number of ships allegedly destroyed may have been concealed in aerial photos by haze or plumes, or targeted offshore, and have not been independently verified. Separate reports stated that an Iranian vessel was foundering near Sri Lankan territorial waters, leading to a rescue operation.

Rocket Installations and Nuclear Facilities Hit

Eliminating Iran's rocket sites and the prevention of nuclear weapons development were listed as further goals of the offensive. Aerial imagery also showed damage at the southern Khorgu and north-western Tabriz missile facilities, and at the Konarak air base, where rocket warehouses and fortifications were targeted.

At the Choqa Balk-e drone base west of the city of Kermanshah, widespread destruction was identified to sheds, underground facilities and unmanned aircraft systems.

Damage was also observed at a radar site at the Zahedan airbase airbase in eastern parts of the country, near the border with neighboring nations.

Of particular note, the latest wave of attacks have reportedly hit facilities at Natanz – widely believed to be at the heart of Iran's atomic program. The UN's atomic energy body commented that the affected buildings were used for access to the site's below-ground enrichment facility and that "no release of radioactive material" was expected.

Broader Consequences and Analysis

Military analysts stated that the strikes appeared to have "greatly reduced" the Iranian navy's ability to sustain traditional warfare using its biggest warships. But, it was noted that Tehran retains the ability to launch unconventional attacks at sea through the use of unmanned aerial vehicles, midget subs and its so-called "ghost fleet" of oil ships.

The total scope of the damage caused to Iranian military infrastructure is still uncertain, with attacks reportedly continuing. Imagery also indicates widespread damage to the command center of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in the city of Tehran.

Numerous of non-military structures also are reported to have been struck in the capital and across the country since the hostilities escalated. Toll estimates from ground sources indicate that many hundreds of civilians may have been fatally injured in the strikes.

With the conflict ongoing, review of space-based data will persist to assess the unfolding scope of damage.