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A series of US and Israeli airstrikes has according to analysis destroyed or damaged a minimum of eleven Iranian naval vessels since the weekend, recently obtained orbital imagery show, with launch facilities and nuclear sites also being targeted.

Pictures of the southern Konarak naval base and the Bandar Abbas port installation, which is located on the strategic Hormuz Strait and is home to the headquarters of the Iran's naval force, reveal smoke billowing from a number of vessels on recent days.

Maritime Forces Sustained Major Losses

Among the ships sunk was the Makran, Iran's biggest warship which had served as a unmanned aerial vehicle platform. Satellite images indicated thick smoke rising from the vessel which had been stationed at the Bandar Abbas base.

Analytical reports indicate that at least five vessels at the port were "struck or destroyed". Imagery of the southern part of the port show smoke rising from the IRINS Makran, while two other vessels seem to be harmed, with a single one visibly ablaze.

Over at the Konarak base, images show multiple stricken vessels, with expert review pointing to impacts on six vessels. Photos taken on the start of the week also show that a number of structures at the base have been leveled.

"For decades the Tehran government has harassed commercial vessels," a senior US military official said. "At present, there is not a single vessel from Iran operational in the Arabian Gulf, Strait of Hormuz or Sea of Oman, and we will persist."

A number of ships allegedly sunk may have been hidden in satellite images by haze or plumes, or targeted offshore, and have yet to be fully confirmed. Separate reports indicated that one Iranian ship was going down near Sri Lankan waters, leading to a search and rescue mission.

Rocket Bases and Atomic Facilities Attacked

The destruction of Iranian missile bases and the prevention of enrichment activities were stated as other aims of the air campaign. Aerial imagery also revealed impacts against the southerly Khorgu and northwestern Tabriz missile bases, and at the Konarak base, where missile storage facilities and bunkers were hit.

At the Choqa Balk-e unmanned aircraft site to the west of the city of Kermanshah, significant destruction was observed to warehouses, bunkers and unmanned aircraft systems.

Destruction was also observed at a radar site at the Zahedan airbase airbase in eastern Iran, close to the border with neighboring nations.

Of particular note, the latest wave of attacks have apparently hit sites at the Natanz complex – considered at the center of Iran's atomic program. The UN's atomic energy body said that the affected buildings were used for entry to the facility's underground nuclear plant and that "no nuclear fallout" was likely.

Wider Impact and Analysis

Defense experts stated that the offensive appeared to have "significantly degraded" the Iran's naval capability to sustain conventional attacks using its biggest warships. But, it was stressed that Tehran retains the option to launch irregular strikes at sea through the use of drones, midget subs and its so-called "clandestine network" of oil ships.

The overall scope of the destruction caused to Iran's defense infrastructure is still uncertain, with strikes said to be persisting. Pictures also indicates extensive damage to the headquarters of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in the capital Tehran.

Numerous of non-military structures also appear to have been damaged in the capital city and throughout the country since the fighting escalated. Toll estimates from local officials state that hundreds of non-combatants may have been killed in the attacks.

Amid continuing hostilities, review of aerial photographs will persist to track the evolving scope of damage.