RAF Typhoon jets have conducted a mission with French aircraft in a combined operation targeting an underground arms cache in Syrian territory employed by the Daesh militant organization, as stated by the British defence ministry.
The location, identified by intelligence, was believed to be housing weapons and explosive materials, the statement said, and was located in hills just above the ancient city of Palmyra in Syria's central region.
"Our fighter planes employed Paveway IV guided bombs to hit a several access tunnels leading to the site... preliminary assessments indicate the objective was successfully hit," the ministry announced.
There was no indication of any civilian impact in the attack on Saturday evening and all the aircraft returned safely, the defence officials confirmed.
The British jets were assisted by a Voyager aerial refuelling aircraft.
IS - referred to as ISIS - enforced militant control over parts of Iraq and Syria before its territorial defeat in 2019.
"This strike underscores British leadership, and commitment to stand shoulder to shoulder with our allies, to eliminate any revival of IS and their violent and radical beliefs in the area," UK Defence Secretary the Defence Secretary said.
RAF aircraft have conducted overwatch operations over Syria to "deter any attempted resurgence" of IS after its routing at the climactic battle in Baghuz in 2019, the MoD reported.
"I want to thank all the members of our armed forces participating in this strike for their professionalism and their courage," he commented. "They were part of a great many UK service members deployed over Christmas and New Year. This operation, to take out terrorist threats who pose a risk to our security, highlights how our armed forces are prepared to act, continuously, ensuring Britain's security domestically and powerful internationally."
During December, the American forces executed what it termed a "massive strike" on IS targets in the country, subsequent to an ambush killed two US troops and a civilian interpreter in Palmyra.
The U.N. says Daesh still maintains between 5,000 and 7,000 militants in Syria and Iraq.
