🔗 Share this article

A series of US and Israeli airstrikes has reportedly eliminated or harmed no fewer than 11 Iran's navy ships starting Saturday, new aerial photos show, with missile bases and atomic facilities also being targeted.

Images of the southerly Konarak military port and the Bandar Abbas port facility, which sits on the Strait of Hormuz and is home to the main command of the Iran's naval force, reveal black smoke pouring from multiple ships on recent days.

Naval Fleet Incurred Substantial Losses

Included in the ships sunk was the Makran, the country's most sizable ship which had served as a drone carrier. Aerial imagery displayed black smoke rising from the ship which had been docked at the Bandar Abbas naval base.

Analytical reports indicate that no fewer than five vessels at Bandar Abbas were "damaged or eliminated". Pictures of the southern part of the port depict plumes ascending from the IRINS Makran, while additional vessels seem to be damaged, with one of them clearly on fire.

Over at Konarak, photos show several harmed vessels, with expert review identifying strikes against six vessels. Images taken on the start of the week also demonstrate that a number of buildings at the installation have been destroyed.

"For decades the Iranian regime has harassed international shipping," a senior US military official said. "Now, there is no Iranian ship operational in the Arabian Gulf, Strait of Hormuz or Gulf of Oman, and we will not stop."

Some ships reportedly destroyed may have been hidden in aerial photos by weather conditions or battle damage, or struck at sea, and have not been independently verified. Other accounts suggested that an Iranian vessel was foundering off the coast of Sri Lanka's waters, resulting in a rescue operation.

Missile Sites and Atomic Facilities Hit

Eliminating Iran's rocket sites and the hindering of enrichment activities were listed as further objectives of the military strikes. Satellite images also showed impacts against the southerly Khorgu base and north-western Tabriz facilities, and at the Konarak air air base, where rocket warehouses and fortifications were hit.

At the Choqa Balk-e drone drone base west of the city of Kermanshah, widespread destruction was observed to sheds, bunkers and drone launch equipment.

Impact was also seen at a radar installation at the Zahedan airbase military airport in eastern Iran, close to the frontier with neighboring nations.

Significantly, the most recent series of strikes have reportedly focused on facilities at the Natanz complex – considered at the core of Iran's nuclear programme. An international watchdog commented that the affected buildings were used for entry to the site's below-ground enrichment facility and that "no nuclear fallout" was anticipated.

Broader Impact and Assessment

Military analysts stated that the attacks appeared to have "largely neutralized" the Iran's naval capacity to conduct traditional warfare using its largest vessels. Nevertheless, it was emphasised that Iran retains the ability to launch irregular strikes at sea through the use of unmanned aerial vehicles, mini-submarines and its so-called "clandestine network" of tankers.

The full scale of the destruction caused to Iranian military infrastructure remains unclear, with strikes said to be continuing. Imagery also indicates extensive damage to the main offices of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in the city of Tehran.

A significant number of public facilities also appear to have been damaged in the capital city and across Iran after the conflict began. Reports of deaths from ground sources indicate that many hundreds of civilians may have been killed in the bombardment.

Amid continuing hostilities, review of space-based data will carry on to assess the evolving military landscape.