British Air Force Typhoon FGR4s have joined forces with France's air force in a coordinated attack against an subterranean weapons facility in Syrian territory used by the Daesh militant organization, according to the British defence ministry.
The facility, identified by intelligence, was thought to be containing munitions and bombs, the release indicated, and was positioned in hills just north of the historic site of Palmyra in Syria's central region.
"The RAF jets used laser-guided Paveway IV weapons to hit a several access tunnels down to the depot... preliminary assessments indicate the objective was successfully hit," officials stated.
There was no sign of any civilian impact in the attack conducted Saturday night and each participating jet made a safe return, the defence officials confirmed.
The British jets were backed up by a Voyager tanker plane.
IS - referred to as ISIS - imposed jihadist rule over large swathes of both Syria and Iraq before its territorial defeat in 2019.
"This operation shows British leadership, and commitment to stand shoulder to shoulder with our partners, to eliminate any resurgence of Daesh and their dangerous and violent ideologies in the Middle East," UK Defence Secretary John Healey remarked.
UK warplanes have conducted surveillance missions over Syrian airspace to "forestall any attempted resurgence" of IS following its routing at the climactic battle in Baghuz in 2019, the authorities noted.
"I extend gratitude to every member of the UK armed forces who took part in this strike for their expertise and their bravery," the Defence Secretary added. "Including them were a great many British troops stationed over the festive period. This operation, to take out dangerous terrorists who threaten our safety, highlights how British military are ready to step up, all year round, ensuring Britain's security domestically and strong abroad."
During December, the United States armed forces carried out what it termed a "large-scale strike" targeting Daesh sites in the country, after an assault resulted in the deaths of two American soldiers and a local interpreter in Palmyra.
The U.N. estimates IS still boasts roughly 5-7 thousand militants in Iraq and Syria.
