Aerial Pictures Show Iranian Naval Forces and Atomic Sites Hit by Joint US and Israeli Strikes.

A wave of American and Israeli strikes has reportedly sunk or crippled at least 11 warships belonging to Iran starting Saturday, recently obtained aerial photos show, with rocket sites and atomic facilities also being targeted.

Images of the southerly Konarak military port and the Bandar Abbas facility, which sits on the strategic Hormuz Strait and houses the headquarters of the Iranian navy, depict smoke billowing from several vessels on Monday and Tuesday.

Maritime Forces Incurred Significant Damage

Included in the ships sunk was the IRINS Makran, Iran's biggest warship which had served as a drone carrier. Satellite images showed thick smoke pouring from the vessel which had been stationed at the Bandar Abbas naval base.

Analytical assessments state that at least five ships at Bandar Abbas were "hit or sunk". Imagery of the south end of the harbor depict plumes ascending from the IRINS Makran, while another pair of ships appear to be damaged, with one of them visibly ablaze.

At the Konarak base, photos display numerous stricken vessels, with intelligence reports identifying damage to a half-dozen warships. Photos from the start of the week also indicate that multiple structures at the installation have been destroyed.

"For decades the Iran's leadership has disrupted international shipping," an American commander declared. "At present, there is no vessel from Iran at sea in the Arabian Gulf, Strait of Hormuz or Gulf of Oman, and we will continue."

Some ships allegedly sunk may have been concealed in aerial photos by weather conditions or battle damage, or struck at sea, and have yet to be fully confirmed. Separate reports indicated that an Iranian vessel was going down near Sri Lankan waters, resulting in a rescue operation.

Missile Bases and Atomic Locations Targeted

Eliminating Tehran's launch facilities and the prevention of nuclear weapons development were stated as further objectives of the military strikes. Aerial imagery also showed damage at the southerly Khorgu and northwestern Tabriz facilities, and at the Konarak air base, where rocket warehouses and fortifications were hit.

At the Choqa Balk-e unmanned aircraft site to the west of the city of Kermanshah, widespread damage was observed to storage buildings, bunkers and UAV launching apparatus.

Destruction was also noted at a radar site at the Zahedan military airport in eastern Iran, near the border with Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Significantly, the latest wave of attacks have reportedly focused on sites at Natanz – considered at the core of the country's nuclear programme. The UN's atomic energy body stated that the damaged structures were used for access to the facility's underground nuclear plant and that "no release of radioactive material" was anticipated.

Broader Fallout and Analysis

Military analysts stated that the strikes appeared to have "greatly reduced" the Iran's naval capability to conduct conventional attacks using its most significant vessels. Nevertheless, it was stressed that Iran retains the capacity to launch asymmetric warfare at sea through the use of drones, mini-submarines and its so-called "ghost fleet" of tankers.

The total scope of the destruction caused to Iranian military facilities is still uncertain, with attacks reportedly continuing. Imagery also reveals extensive damage to the headquarters of the Iran's Revolutionary Guards in the city of Tehran.

Numerous of civilian buildings also appear to have been damaged in the capital and across the country since the fighting started. Casualty figures from inside Iran suggest that hundreds of non-combatants may have been fatally injured in the strikes.

With the conflict ongoing, review of satellite imagery will continue to track the evolving scope of damage.