🔗 Share this article Space-Based Images Reveal Iran's Naval Forces and Atomic Locations Hit by American and Israeli Military Action. A series of joint airstrikes has according to analysis sunk or crippled at least eleven Iranian naval vessels since Saturday, freshly analyzed satellite images reveal, with rocket sites and nuclear sites also sustaining hits. Pictures of the southerly Konarak naval base and the Bandar Abbas port facility, which sits on the strategic Hormuz Strait and is home to the headquarters of the Iranian navy, reveal black smoke pouring from multiple ships on the start of the week. Naval Assets Sustained Major Damage Among the targets eliminated was the Makran, Iran's most sizable ship which had served as a unmanned aerial vehicle platform. Aerial imagery showed dark plumes rising from the ship which had been moored at the Bandar Abbas base. Intelligence assessments state that no fewer than five ships at Bandar Abbas were "hit or sunk". Imagery of the southern end of the harbor reveal plumes ascending from the Makran, while another pair of ships are visibly damaged, with one of them seen burning. Over at the Konarak base, photos show multiple stricken ships, with expert review pointing to strikes against a half-dozen warships. Images from Monday also indicate that a number of facilities at the installation have been demolished. "For many years the Iran's leadership has threatened commercial vessels," a senior US military official declared. "Today, there is no Iranian vessel underway in the Arabian Gulf, Strait of Hormuz or Gulf of Oman, and we will continue." A number of vessels reportedly destroyed may have been obscured in satellite images by cloud or smoke, or targeted offshore, and have not been independently verified. Additional information suggested that a ship from Iran was sinking off the coast of Sri Lankan territorial waters, resulting in a search and rescue mission. Missile Sites and Atomic Locations Targeted The destruction of Iranian missile bases and the hindering of atomic bomb programs were declared as other goals of the offensive. Aerial imagery also revealed impacts against the southern Khorgu base and north-western Tabriz missile bases, and at the Konarak air base, where missile storage facilities and bunkers were targeted. At the Choqa Balk-e drone drone base to the west of the city of Kermanshah, extensive damage was identified to storage buildings, bunkers and UAV launching apparatus. Destruction was also noted at a surveillance station at the Zahedan military airport in eastern parts of the country, near the border with Afghanistan and Pakistan. Perhaps most notably, the latest wave of strikes have reportedly targeted sites at the Natanz complex – long said to be at the center of Iran's nuclear programme. An international watchdog said that the damaged buildings were used for access to the facility's underground enrichment facility and that "no release of radioactive material" was expected. Wider Consequences and Analysis Military analysts stated that the offensive appeared to have "greatly reduced" the Iranian navy's ability to carry out traditional warfare using its biggest vessels. But, it was noted that Tehran maintains the capacity to launch asymmetric warfare at sea through the use of unmanned aerial vehicles, mini-submarines and its so-called "shadow fleet" of tankers. The overall scope of the destruction caused to Iran's defense facilities remains unclear, with hostilities reportedly persisting. Imagery also shows considerable damage to the command center of the Iran's Revolutionary Guards in the city of Tehran. A large number of non-military structures also are reported to have been damaged in the capital city and across the country after the conflict escalated. Reports of deaths from ground sources state that a high number of civilians may have been lost their lives in the strikes. With the conflict ongoing, monitoring of space-based data will continue to track the unfolding scope of damage.