🔗 Share this article

A series of US and Israeli attacks has according to analysis sunk or crippled at least eleven warships belonging to Iran starting Saturday, recently obtained orbital imagery demonstrate, with launch facilities and atomic facilities also sustaining hits.

Images of the southern Konarak military port and the Bandar Abbas installation, which overlooks the strategic Hormuz Strait and houses the headquarters of the Iran's naval force, show black smoke pouring from several warships on recent days.

Naval Assets Sustained Significant Losses

Included in the vessels destroyed was the IRINS Makran, the country's largest naval vessel which had been used as a unmanned aerial vehicle platform. Orbital photos showed thick smoke pouring from the vessel which had been moored at the Bandar Abbas naval base.

Intelligence reports suggest that at least five vessels at the port were "damaged or eliminated". Photos of the south end of the port depict smoke rising from the Makran, while additional vessels seem to be impacted, with one of them clearly on fire.

Over at Konarak, images reveal numerous harmed ships, with intelligence reports identifying damage to six vessels. Photos from Monday also show that several buildings at the base have been leveled.

"For a long time the Tehran government has disrupted global maritime traffic," a senior US military official declared. "At present, there is no Iranian ship at sea in the Persian Gulf, Hormuz Strait or Sea of Oman, and we will not stop."

A number of ships allegedly destroyed may have been concealed in aerial photos by cloud or smoke, or hit in open waters, and have yet to be fully confirmed. Separate reports indicated that an Iranian vessel was sinking off the coast of Sri Lankan waters, resulting in a rescue operation.

Missile Bases and Atomic Locations Hit

Eliminating Iranian missile bases and the hindering of nuclear weapons development were declared as other goals of the offensive. Satellite images also revealed damage at the southerly Khorgu and north-western Tabriz missile bases, and at the Konarak air base, where rocket warehouses and fortifications were targeted.

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

Impact was also observed at a surveillance station at the Zahedan military airport in eastern parts of the country, close to the border with neighboring nations.

Of particular note, the new round of attacks have reportedly hit sites at Natanz – long said to be at the heart of the country's nuclear programme. The UN's atomic energy body commented that the damaged structures were used for entry to the site's below-ground nuclear plant and that "no radiological consequence" was anticipated.

Wider Consequences and Assessment

Military analysts indicated that the attacks appeared to have "greatly reduced" the Iranian navy's capacity to conduct traditional warfare using its biggest vessels. But, it was emphasised that Tehran still has the option to launch irregular strikes at sea through the use of unmanned aerial vehicles, midget subs and its so-called "ghost fleet" of oil ships.

The overall scope of the destruction caused to Iranian military facilities remains unclear, with hostilities said to be persisting. Imagery also reveals widespread destruction to the main offices of the Iran's Revolutionary Guards in the city of Tehran.

Numerous of non-military structures also appear to have been struck in the capital city and throughout the country after the fighting began. Reports of deaths from ground sources indicate that many hundreds of non-combatants may have been lost their lives in the bombardment.

With the conflict ongoing, review of aerial photographs will persist to document the unfolding scope of damage.