British Air Force Typhoon FGR4s have joined forces with French warplanes in a joint strike targeting an underground arms cache in Syria used by the Islamic State group (IS), as stated by the British defence ministry.
The location, identified by surveillance, was assessed as containing munitions and bombs, the announcement noted, and was positioned in mountains just north of the historic site of Palmyra in central Syria.
"Our aircraft employed Paveway IV guided bombs to hit a number of access tunnels leading to the facility... preliminary assessments indicate the target was engaged successfully," officials stated.
There was no indication of any civilian casualties in the attack conducted Saturday night and each participating jet returned to base without incident, the MoD added.
The Typhoon fighters were backed up by a Voyager refuelling tanker.
IS - alternatively referred to as Daesh - enforced extremist governance over large swathes of Syria and Iraq until 2019.
"This strike underscores British leadership, and commitment to work closely with our partners, to eradicate any revival of Daesh and their violent and radical beliefs in the Middle East," the British Defence Secretary John Healey remarked.
British military aircraft have carried out overwatch operations over Syrian airspace to "deter any attempted comeback" of IS subsequent to its military defeat at the climactic battle in Baghuz in 2019, the authorities noted.
"I want to thank all the members of the UK armed forces involved in this mission for their professionalism and their courage," he added. "They were part of a great many UK service members stationed over Christmas and New Year. This operation, to eliminate terrorist threats who pose a risk to our safety, highlights how our armed forces are prepared to act, continuously, protecting the UK within its borders and influential overseas."
In December, the United States armed forces conducted what it termed a "large-scale strike" against Daesh sites in Syria, following an ambush killed two US troops and a local interpreter in Palmyra.
The UN reports Daesh still boasts between 5,000 and 7,000 combatants in both countries.
