Key facts
- Over 250,000 previously restricted high-resolution satellite images of Iranian military and nuclear sites have been released.
- Images from Bushehr and Esfahan show damage to military buildings, government facilities, aircraft hangars, ammunition storage, dockyards, piers, and missile launch sites.
- Specific targets included nuclear facilities, surface-to-air missile sites, and naval bases.
- Janes, a military intelligence company, analyzed the imagery and confirmed damage consistent with US-Israeli strikes.
- Restrictions on satellite imagery access over parts of the Middle East, including Iran, remain in place.
The extent of damage to some of Iran's military and nuclear sites has been revealed for the first time following the release of over 250,000 previously restricted high-resolution satellite images. BBC Verify analyzed imagery from Esfahan and Bushehr, captured since March 9, which shows a variety of targets including ammunition storage areas, ballistic missile infrastructure, nuclear and surface-to-air missile sites, and naval bases. Military intelligence company Janes confirmed that the damage visible in the images correlates with US-Israeli strike campaigns aimed at degrading infrastructure.
In the coastal city of Bushehr, several sites have been damaged or destroyed, including military buildings, government facilities, aircraft hangars, ammunition storage, dockyards, piers, and missile launch sites belonging to both the Iranian government and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). Many structures show caved-in roofs or appear flattened, with some images depicting destroyed aircraft and sunken ships. Craters were observed on multiple runways, including at Bushehr International Airport, though some have since been repaired. In some designated military areas, nearly every building has been destroyed.
Images from the Esfahan province, home to nuclear facilities in Esfahan and Natanz, also reveal significant damage to military infrastructure. At military bases in the region, buildings identified as ammunition storage areas for an airbase have been damaged. More than 60 structures were severely damaged or destroyed at a military base in the south of the city, with another dozen hit at a base near Baharestan.
The decision to restrict access to these images has limited the ability of journalists, humanitarian groups, and analysts to assess the impact of conflicts. Restrictions on Planet's imagery remain in place for most of the Middle East, including Iran, due to ongoing national security and personnel safety concerns.