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A series of US and Israeli strikes has reportedly sunk or crippled at least 11 Iranian naval vessels since the weekend, freshly analyzed aerial photos show, with launch facilities and nuclear sites also being targeted.

Pictures of the southerly Konarak military port and the Bandar Abbas installation, which sits on the Strait of Hormuz and is home to the headquarters of the Iran's naval force, show black smoke pouring from several warships on recent days.

Maritime Assets Sustained Significant Losses

Among the vessels destroyed was the IRINS Makran, the country's biggest warship which had served as a drone carrier. Satellite images showed black smoke rising from the vessel which had been stationed at the Bandar Abbas base.

Analytical evaluations indicate that no fewer than five vessels at Bandar Abbas were "hit or sunk". Imagery of the southern end of the port depict smoke emanating from the IRINS Makran, while two other vessels appear to be damaged, with one visibly ablaze.

At Konarak, photos show multiple stricken vessels, with analysis identifying strikes against six ships. Pictures taken on Monday also indicate that multiple structures at the installation have been demolished.

"For many years the Tehran government has threatened international shipping," the head of US Central Command said. "At present, there is no Iranian ship underway in the Arabian Gulf, Hormuz Strait or Gulf of Oman, and we will persist."

Some ships allegedly sunk may have been hidden in satellite images by cloud or smoke, or targeted offshore, and have not been independently verified. Additional information stated that an Iranian vessel was foundering off the coast of Sri Lanka's territorial waters, resulting in a rescue operation.

Rocket Sites and Atomic Locations Hit

The destruction of Iran's rocket sites and the stopping nuclear weapons development were stated as additional goals of the military strikes. Satellite images also showed damage at the southern Khorgu base and northwestern Tabriz missile facilities, and at the Konarak air air base, where rocket warehouses and fortifications were struck.

Over at the Choqa Balk-e drone drone base west of the city of Kermanshah, widespread destruction was observed to warehouses, bunkers and drone launch equipment.

Impact was also observed at a radar site at the Zahedan airbase in eastern Iran, near the border with Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Perhaps most notably, the most recent series of attacks have reportedly hit facilities at the Natanz complex – considered at the heart of the country's nuclear programme. A global monitoring agency commented that the damaged buildings were used for access to the facility's below-ground nuclear plant and that "no radiological consequence" was anticipated.

Broader Impact and Assessment

Military analysts stated that the attacks appeared to have "significantly degraded" the Iran's naval capability to conduct standard operations using its biggest warships. Nevertheless, it was stressed that Iran retains the capacity to launch irregular strikes 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 Iranian military facilities is still uncertain, with strikes reportedly ongoing. Photos also reveals widespread damage to the main offices of the Iran's Revolutionary Guards in the capital Tehran.

A significant number of civilian buildings also are reported to have been struck in the capital city and throughout the country after the fighting escalated. Reports of deaths from inside Iran state that hundreds of non-combatants may have been killed in the strikes.

With the conflict ongoing, analysis of space-based data will carry on to assess the changing battlefield picture.