🔗 Share this article Space-Based Images Depict Iranian Navy and Nuclear Facilities Damaged by US-Israeli Military Action. A series of joint strikes has allegedly sunk or crippled at least 11 warships belonging to Iran since the weekend, recently obtained satellite images demonstrate, with rocket sites and nuclear sites also sustaining hits. Photographs of the southerly Konarak naval military port and the Bandar Abbas facility, which is located on the strategic Hormuz Strait and is home to the headquarters of the Iranian navy, show plumes of smoke rising from multiple ships on the start of the week. Maritime Forces Sustained Substantial Losses Included in the vessels destroyed was the Makran, Iran's most sizable ship which had been used as a unmanned aerial vehicle platform. Orbital photos showed dark plumes pouring from the ship which had been docked at the Bandar Abbas naval base. Analytical reports state that no fewer than a quintet of warships at Bandar Abbas were "damaged or eliminated". Photos of the southern end of the harbor reveal plumes ascending from the Makran, while additional ships seem to be harmed, with a single one visibly ablaze. Over at the Konarak base, images display numerous damaged ships, with analysis pointing to impacts on six vessels. Photos taken on Monday also show that several structures at the installation have been leveled. "For many years the Iranian regime has threatened commercial vessels," a senior US military official stated. "Now, there is not one vessel from Iran operational in the Arabian Gulf, Strait of Hormuz or Gulf of Oman, and we will persist." A number of ships 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 suggested that one Iranian ship was foundering off the coast of Sri Lankan waters, leading to a search and rescue mission. Missile Installations and Atomic Locations Attacked Neutralizing Tehran's launch facilities and the prevention of atomic bomb programs were declared as additional goals of the air campaign. Aerial imagery also depicted impacts against the southerly Khorgu and north-western Tabriz missile missile bases, and at the Konarak air base, where weapons bunkers and fortifications were hit. Over at the Choqa Balk-e UAV facility west of Kermanshah, widespread destruction was seen to storage buildings, bunkers and UAV launching apparatus. Impact was also observed at a surveillance station at the Zahedan airbase military airport in eastern Iran, near the frontier with Afghanistan and Pakistan. Significantly, the latest wave of strikes have reportedly hit installations at Natanz – long said to be at the center of the country's enrichment efforts. A global monitoring agency stated that the affected structures were used for access to the site's underground nuclear plant and that "no release of radioactive material" was expected. Wider Consequences and Analysis Defense experts indicated that the offensive appeared to have "significantly degraded" the Iran's naval ability to conduct standard operations using its biggest vessels. However, it was stressed that Tehran retains the ability to launch irregular strikes at sea through the use of unmanned aerial vehicles, mini-submarines and its so-called "shadow fleet" of oil ships. The full extent of the destruction caused to Iran's defense facilities is still uncertain, with strikes said to be continuing. Photos also reveals widespread destruction to the command center of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in the city of Tehran. A large number of civilian buildings also seem to have been damaged in the capital and across the country since the hostilities began. Reports of deaths from inside Iran indicate that many hundreds of civilians may have been lost their lives in the strikes. As the situation develops, monitoring of satellite imagery will persist to assess the unfolding battlefield picture.