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A wave of American and Israeli airstrikes has according to analysis eliminated or harmed no fewer than 11 Iran's navy ships starting Saturday, recently obtained aerial photos demonstrate, with launch facilities and nuclear sites also being targeted.

Pictures of the southern Konarak naval base and the Bandar Abbas port installation, which overlooks the Strait of Hormuz and contains the main command of the Iran's naval force, reveal smoke billowing from several ships on recent days.

Naval Fleet Sustained Substantial Damage

Included in the vessels destroyed was the IRINS Makran, Iran's most sizable ship which had served as a drone carrier. Aerial imagery indicated black smoke emanating from the vessel which had been moored at the Bandar Abbas base.

Analytical reports state that no fewer than a quintet of warships at Bandar Abbas were "damaged or eliminated". Pictures of the south end of the port depict smoke emanating from the IRINS Makran, while another pair of ships are visibly harmed, with one of them visibly ablaze.

Over at the Konarak base, photos reveal multiple stricken ships, with expert review identifying damage to a half-dozen warships. Photos taken on the start of the week also demonstrate that multiple facilities at the installation have been demolished.

"For a long time the Iran's leadership has threatened international shipping," the head of US Central Command declared. "Now, there is no Iranian ship operational in the Persian Gulf, Strait of Hormuz or Gulf of Oman, and we will persist."

A number of ships allegedly destroyed may have been obscured in satellite images by weather conditions or battle damage, or struck at sea, and have not been conclusively proven. Separate reports indicated that an Iranian vessel was sinking off the coast of Sri Lanka's territorial waters, resulting in a rescue operation.

Rocket Installations and Nuclear Facilities Hit

Eliminating Tehran's launch facilities and the hindering of enrichment activities were stated as other objectives of the military strikes. Satellite images also showed damage at the southerly Khorgu and north-western Tabriz facilities, and at the Konarak air base, where weapons bunkers and fortifications were hit.

At the Choqa Balk-e unmanned aircraft site to the west of the city of Kermanshah, significant damage was identified to warehouses, bunkers and drone launch equipment.

Impact was also seen at a radar installation at the Zahedan airbase airbase in eastern parts of the country, close to the frontier with neighboring nations.

Of particular note, the most recent series of strikes have apparently targeted sites at the Natanz complex – long said to be at the heart of the country's nuclear programme. A global monitoring agency commented that the damaged structures were used for entry to the facility's below-ground nuclear plant and that "no release of radioactive material" was expected.

Broader Impact and Analysis

Military analysts suggested that the attacks appeared to have "significantly degraded" the Iran's naval capacity to carry out standard operations using its largest warships. Nevertheless, it was emphasised that Iran still has 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 overall extent of the damage caused to Iran's defense infrastructure has yet to be fully assessed, with attacks reportedly continuing. Imagery also indicates widespread destruction to the command center of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in the capital Tehran.

Numerous of public facilities also seem to have been hit in the capital city and across the country since the fighting began. Toll estimates from inside Iran indicate that hundreds of civilians may have been lost their lives in the strikes.

As the situation develops, review of aerial photographs will persist to document the changing battlefield picture.