🔗 Share this article

A series of US and Israeli airstrikes has allegedly eliminated or harmed at least eleven Iranian naval vessels starting the weekend, new aerial photos show, with rocket sites and nuclear sites also coming under fire.

Images of the southerly Konarak military port and the Bandar Abbas port installation, which is located on the strategic Hormuz Strait and houses the headquarters of the Iran's naval force, reveal black smoke pouring from a number of warships on the start of the week.

Maritime Assets Incurred Significant Losses

Included in the targets eliminated was the IRINS Makran, Iran's biggest warship which had been used as a drone carrier. Aerial imagery indicated thick smoke emanating from the ship which had been docked at the Bandar Abbas base.

Analytical reports indicate that at least a quintet of warships at the port were "damaged or eliminated". Pictures of the southern part of the harbor depict plumes ascending from the IRINS Makran, while two other ships are visibly harmed, with one of them clearly on fire.

Over at Konarak, photos display numerous stricken ships, with intelligence reports identifying damage to six ships. Images taken on Monday also demonstrate that a number of structures at the base have been leveled.

"For decades the Tehran government has disrupted global maritime traffic," the head of US Central Command said. "Now, there is not one vessel from Iran underway in the Arabian Gulf, Strait of Hormuz or Sea of Oman, and we will persist."

A number of vessels allegedly destroyed may have been obscured in aerial photos by weather conditions or battle damage, or hit in open waters, and have not been independently verified. Separate reports indicated that an Iranian vessel was foundering off the coast of Sri Lankan waters, resulting in a rescue operation.

Missile Sites and Atomic Facilities Hit

Eliminating Iranian missile bases and the prevention of enrichment activities were listed as additional goals of the military strikes. Aerial imagery also depicted impacts against the southerly Khorgu and northwestern Tabriz missile bases, and at the Konarak air base, where weapons bunkers and bunkers were targeted.

Over at the Choqa Balk-e drone drone base to the west of the city of Kermanshah, extensive damage was observed to warehouses, bunkers and drone launch equipment.

Destruction was also seen at a radar site at the Zahedan military airport in eastern parts of the country, near the frontier with Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Significantly, the most recent series of attacks have apparently hit installations at the Natanz complex – widely believed to be at the core of Iran's enrichment efforts. An international watchdog commented that the affected structures were used for access to the site's underground enrichment facility and that "no nuclear fallout" was expected.

Wider Fallout and Analysis

Observers stated that the strikes appeared to have "greatly reduced" the Iranian navy's capability to conduct conventional attacks using its most significant warships. Nevertheless, it was emphasised that Iran still has the option to launch unconventional attacks at sea through the use of unmanned aerial vehicles, mini-submarines and its so-called "ghost fleet" of tankers.

The overall extent of the destruction caused to Iran's defense infrastructure is still uncertain, with attacks reportedly ongoing. Imagery also indicates extensive destruction to the command center of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in the city of Tehran.

A significant number of public facilities also seem to have been struck in the capital city and throughout Iran after the fighting began. Casualty figures from local officials indicate that many hundreds of civilians may have been lost their lives in the strikes.

Amid continuing hostilities, review of aerial photographs will continue to document the evolving military landscape.