British Air Force Typhoon FGR4s have conducted a mission with French warplanes in a joint strike on an hidden munitions depot in Syrian territory employed by the Islamic State group (IS), as stated by the UK's MoD.
The facility, identified by intelligence, was assessed as housing weapons and explosive materials, the announcement noted, and was located in mountains just north of Palmyra in the heart of Syria.
"Our fighter planes employed precision-guided Paveway IV munitions to hit a number of access tunnels providing entry to the facility... preliminary assessments indicate the target was engaged successfully," the ministry announced.
There was no sign of any civilian impact in the operation conducted Saturday night and every plane involved returned to base without incident, the ministry further stated.
The British jets were backed up by a Voyager tanker plane.
The Islamic State group - alternatively referred to as the so-called Islamic State - enforced jihadist rule over significant areas in both Syria and Iraq until 2019.
"This action shows our UK leadership, and determination to work closely with our allies, to stamp out any revival of IS and their harmful and extremist ideologies in the area," UK Defence Secretary the Defence Secretary said.
UK warplanes have performed surveillance missions over Syrian airspace to "prevent any attempted resurgence" of IS subsequent to its defeat at the climactic battle in Baghuz in 2019, the authorities noted.
"I want to thank the personnel of British forces who took part in this strike for their professionalism and their courage," he said. "They were among numerous UK service members deployed over Christmas and New Year. This action, to take out dangerous terrorists who pose a risk to our safety, shows how UK forces are always on standby, all year round, keeping Britain secure at home and powerful internationally."
In December, the US military carried out what it called a "massive strike" targeting Islamic State objectives in the country, after an ambush killed two American soldiers and a local interpreter in the Palmyra area.
The United Nations says Islamic State still has roughly 5-7 thousand fighters in Iraq and Syria.
