🔗 Share this article Orbital Images Indicate Iranian Naval Forces and Atomic Sites Damaged by Joint US and Israeli Strikes. A wave of American and Israeli strikes has allegedly sunk or crippled a minimum of 11 Iran's navy ships since Saturday, new orbital imagery show, with missile bases and atomic facilities also sustaining hits. Pictures of the southerly Konarak military port and the Bandar Abbas port facility, which sits on the Strait of Hormuz and houses the headquarters of the Iranian navy, show plumes of smoke rising from multiple ships on Monday and Tuesday. Maritime Assets Incurred Major Damage Included in the ships sunk was the IRINS Makran, the country's biggest warship which had been used as a drone carrier. Orbital photos indicated dark plumes pouring from the vessel which had been docked at the Bandar Abbas base. Intelligence assessments indicate that no fewer than five vessels at the port were "hit or sunk". Photos of the southern end of the port depict smoke emanating from the Makran, while another pair of vessels seem to be harmed, with one visibly ablaze. Over at the Konarak base, images display multiple damaged vessels, with expert review pointing to damage to six vessels. Pictures taken on the start of the week also show that several buildings at the installation have been destroyed. "For a long time the Iran's leadership has disrupted international shipping," a senior US military official stated. "Today, there is not a single vessel from Iran operational in the Persian Gulf, Strait of Hormuz or Sea of Oman, and we will persist." Some vessels reportedly destroyed may have been concealed in aerial photos by cloud or smoke, or hit in open waters, and have not been independently verified. Separate reports stated that one Iranian ship was foundering off the coast of Sri Lankan territorial waters, prompting a rescue operation. Missile Sites and Atomic Facilities Hit The destruction of Iran's rocket sites and the stopping enrichment activities were listed as other objectives of the military strikes. Aerial imagery also depicted strikes on the southern Khorgu base and north-western Tabriz missile bases, and at the Konarak air air base, where rocket warehouses and bunkers were targeted. Over at the Choqa Balk-e unmanned aircraft site west of Kermanshah, significant destruction was seen to sheds, underground facilities and drone launch equipment. Impact was also noted at a radar installation at the Zahedan airbase in eastern parts of the country, close to the frontier with Afghanistan and Pakistan. Perhaps most notably, the latest wave of attacks have reportedly focused on installations at the Natanz complex – considered at the core of the country's nuclear programme. A global monitoring agency stated that the affected buildings were used for access to the facility's below-ground nuclear plant and that "no release of radioactive material" was expected. Wider Fallout and Assessment Observers stated that the offensive appeared to have "largely neutralized" the Iran's naval ability to carry out traditional warfare using its biggest vessels. However, it was stressed that Iran maintains the option to launch asymmetric warfare at sea through the use of drones, midget subs and its so-called "ghost fleet" of oil ships. The full scope of the damage caused to Iran's defense facilities is still uncertain, with attacks said to be continuing. Pictures also shows extensive destruction to the main offices of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in the capital Tehran. Numerous of non-military structures also seem to have been damaged in the capital city and throughout Iran since the fighting began. Reports of deaths from inside Iran indicate that hundreds of non-combatants may have been fatally injured in the bombardment. As the situation develops, analysis of satellite imagery will persist to track the unfolding military landscape.