Missiles launched from Iran streak across the sky over central Israel, on Wednesday, March 18. AP/PTI
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- 18 March 2026 7:03 AM IST
Satellite images begin to show damage wrought by Iran war
Satellite images are beginning to be released giving a glimpse into the toll of the Iran war, with ships ablaze in an Iranian port and destroyed buildings at an American base.
Some of the most dramatic images from Planet Labs so far have been in Bandar Abbas, home to a major Iranian military port next to the crucial Strait of Hormuz connecting the Persian Gulf to the Arabian Sea.
Images taken on March 2 show ships ablaze at the port. The US military's Central Command has been targeting Iran's naval assets and says it has sunk or damaged more than 100 Iranian vessels so far in the war.
The island kingdom of Bahrain, home of the US Navy's 5th Fleet, has seen heavy Iranian fire targeting both military bases and oil installations.
A March 1 image shot by Planet Labs shows a major building at the base destroyed, as well as two radomes — geodesic domes covering radar antennas — likely by Iranian missile and drone fire.
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.
In Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates, there's damage seen at France's Camp de la Paix naval base. Satellite images from March 3 show damage to two large hangar-like buildings at the facility. The base is near Zayed Port, in Abu Dhabi, and close to its Cultural District that includes the Louvre Abu Dhabi and other major museums both open and still under construction.
The US Geological Survey's Landsat satellites also have been key in spotting major fires. Imagery from Landsat taken on Monday showed a fire at Dubai International Airport after an Iranian drone strike set a fuel tanker ablaze at the world's busiest airport for international travel, causing a plume of noxious black smoke.
Another fire was also seen on Monday at Oman's southern port in Salalah, which came under attack from suspected Iranian drones on March 11, though Tehran has denied it launched them in its campaign targeting Gulf Arab states. The fire apparently has been burning since then.
