New satellite images are beginning to provide one of the clearest pictures yet of the destruction caused by the Iran war, revealing damage at military sites, ports, air bases and other key facilities across the Middle East.Since the war began on February 28, much of the impact has remained difficult to assess, especially inside closed military compounds and restricted areas. But imagery released in recent days is now offering a closer look at strikes inside Iran and at American and allied positions across the Gulf.The United States and Israel have been striking a wide range of targets in Iran, including leadership figures, military bases, missile and air defense sites, and positions linked to the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard and the Basij.
Iran has responded with drone and missile attacks targeting Israel and nearby Gulf Arab nations.
Burning ships in Bandar Abbas, Iran
Some of the most dramatic images so far come from Bandar Abbas, home to a major Iranian military port near the Strait of Hormuz.Images taken on March 2 show ships ablaze at the port. The US military’s Central Command says it has sunk or damaged more than 100 Iranian vessels during the war.
Israeli airstrike hits Iran’s Parchin military base
Planet Labs images from March 6 show damage to several buildings at Iran’s Parchin military base outside Tehran.
The International Atomic Energy Agency has long suspected the site was used in the past for tests involving high explosives that could trigger a nuclear weapon. Iran has insisted its nuclear program is peaceful, though the IAEA, Western intelligence agencies and others say Tehran had an active weapons program until 2003.Israel’s military said its Parchin strikes hit “infrastructure used for the production of essential components for the development of various weapons.”
The site has also been linked to Iran’s ballistic missile program.
Major impact at 5th Fleet headquarters in Bahrain
In Bahrain, satellite images show major damage at the headquarters of the US Navy’s 5th Fleet.A March 1 image shows a major building destroyed and two radomes — geodesic domes covering radar antennas — apparently hit by Iranian missile and drone fire. A later image from March 6 showed another building damaged.The Navy has not provided a clear breakdown of the damage at the base, though Iran has repeatedly claimed to have attacked it.
Online videos have also shown incoming fire targeting the site.During the 12-day war in June, Iran attacked and destroyed a similar radome at Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar, used for secure communications.
Damage seen at Qatar’s Al Udeid Air Base
A March 1 Planet Labs image also shows damage to one of the buildings at Qatar’s Al Udeid Air Base, the forward headquarters of the US military’s Central Command.Qatar and the United States have not acknowledged the damage.
Strike at Saudi Arabia’s Prince Sultan Air Base
In Saudi Arabia, an Iranian attack also struck Prince Sultan Air Base.A March 15 image shows damage at the site.
Satellite images show damage to UAE air base
Further damage was visible in the United Arab Emirates.Satellite images taken March 15 by an Airbus Defense and Space Pléiades Neo satellite and analyzed by the AP show damage at Abu Dhabi’s Al Dhafra Air Base. One set of hangars in the northwest section of the facility appears damaged, while another hangar in the southeast appears burned out, with a nearby hangar also showing roof damage.
It remains unclear what was inside the hangars.Al Dhafra usually hosts about 2,000 American troops and has served in recent years as a major base for operations involving armed drones and F-35 stealth fighters.The US military had long referred to it only as a base in “southwest Asia” before the UAE became more open about the American presence there.
French naval base hit in Abu Dhabi
Elsewhere in Abu Dhabi, satellite images from March 3 show damage to two large hangarlike buildings at France’s Camp de la Paix naval base.The facility is near Zayed Port and close to the Cultural District, home to the Louvre Abu Dhabi and other major museums.
Satellite imagery has also helped identify major fires linked to the conflict.Landsat images taken on Monday showed a fire at Dubai International Airport after an Iranian drone strike set a fuel tanker ablaze, sending up a plume of black smoke.Another fire was visible on Monday at Oman’s southern port in Salalah, which came under attack from suspected Iranian drones on March 11.Tehran has denied launching the drones, but the fire appeared to have been burning since the attack.
