British Air Force Typhoon FGR4s have joined forces with French warplanes in a joint strike against an subterranean weapons facility in Syrian territory employed by the Daesh militant organization, according to the UK's MoD.
The site, located using reconnaissance, was thought to be storing arms and explosives, the release indicated, and was positioned in mountains just to the north of Palmyra in the heart of Syria.
"Our aircraft utilized precision-guided Paveway IV munitions to target a number of access tunnels providing entry to the depot... preliminary assessments suggest the objective was successfully hit," the ministry announced.
There was no indication of any civilian casualties in the operation late on Saturday and all the aircraft made a safe return, the MoD added.
The British jets were assisted by a Voyager aerial refuelling aircraft.
Daesh - alternatively referred to as ISIS - established jihadist rule over significant areas in Syria and Iraq before its territorial defeat in 2019.
"This action demonstrates the UK's leading role, and commitment to work closely with allied nations, to eliminate any resurgence of IS and their violent and radical beliefs in the area," the British Defence Secretary the Defence Secretary remarked.
UK warplanes have conducted overwatch operations over Syrian airspace to "prevent any attempted comeback" of Islamic State subsequent to its military defeat at the battle of Baghuz in 2019, the authorities noted.
"I must thank every member of British forces participating in this strike for their expertise and their valour," the Defence Secretary added. "They were part of numerous British troops deployed over Christmas and New Year. This operation, to remove dangerous terrorists who threaten our safety, shows how UK forces are ready to step up, all year round, ensuring Britain's security domestically and powerful internationally."
Last December, the US military conducted what it termed a "massive strike" targeting Islamic State objectives in the country, after an ambush killed two American soldiers and a civilian interpreter in the Palmyra area.
The United Nations reports IS still has roughly 5-7 thousand fighters in Syria and Iraq.
