🔗 Share this article

A wave of American and Israeli attacks has reportedly sunk or crippled no fewer than eleven Iranian naval vessels starting the weekend, recently obtained aerial photos show, with launch facilities and enrichment plants also sustaining hits.

Images of the southerly Konarak naval naval base and the Bandar Abbas facility, which overlooks the Strait of Hormuz and houses the headquarters of the Iran's naval force, depict plumes of smoke rising from a number of ships on the start of the week.

Maritime Assets Incurred Substantial Damage

Among the targets eliminated was the Makran, the country's biggest warship which had been used as a drone carrier. Orbital photos displayed black smoke pouring from the vessel which had been moored at the Bandar Abbas base.

Intelligence assessments indicate that no fewer than five ships at the port were "damaged or eliminated". Pictures of the southern part of the port depict smoke rising from the IRINS Makran, while additional ships appear to be impacted, with one of them clearly on fire.

Over at Konarak, photos display multiple damaged ships, with expert review pointing to damage to six vessels. Images taken on Monday also indicate that several facilities at the base have been destroyed.

"For decades the Tehran government has disrupted international shipping," the head of US Central Command declared. "At present, there is no Iranian vessel at sea in the Arabian Gulf, Hormuz Strait or Gulf of Oman, and we will not stop."

A number of ships allegedly sunk may have been hidden in satellite images by cloud or smoke, or struck at sea, and have yet to be fully confirmed. Separate reports suggested that an Iranian vessel was foundering near Sri Lankan waters, resulting in a rescue operation.

Rocket Installations and Nuclear Locations Attacked

The destruction of Iranian missile bases and the stopping atomic bomb programs were declared as further aims of the air campaign. Satellite images also depicted impacts against the southerly Khorgu base and north-western Tabriz missile facilities, and at the Konarak air base, where weapons bunkers and bunkers were struck.

At the Choqa Balk-e drone unmanned aircraft site west of Kermanshah, widespread destruction was observed to warehouses, underground facilities and UAV launching apparatus.

Damage was also noted at a radar installation at the Zahedan military airport in eastern parts of the country, close to the border with neighboring nations.

Significantly, the most recent series of strikes have apparently targeted sites at the Natanz complex – long said to be at the core of the country's nuclear programme. An international watchdog commented that the damaged structures were used for entry to the site's underground nuclear plant and that "no radiological consequence" was likely.

Broader Impact and Analysis

Military analysts stated that the attacks appeared to have "largely neutralized" the Iran's naval capacity to carry out conventional attacks using its largest vessels. But, it was noted that Tehran maintains the option to launch unconventional attacks at sea through the use of drones, midget subs and its so-called "ghost fleet" of tankers.

The overall scale of the damage caused to Iranian military facilities remains unclear, with hostilities said to be ongoing. Photos also indicates considerable destruction to the command center of the the IRGC in the city of Tehran.

Numerous of public facilities also appear to have been damaged in the capital and throughout Iran since the hostilities began. Reports of deaths from local officials state that many hundreds of non-combatants may have been fatally injured in the bombardment.

With the conflict ongoing, analysis of aerial photographs will persist to assess the changing battlefield picture.