RAF Typhoon fighter aircraft have conducted a mission with French warplanes in a joint strike targeting an underground arms cache in Syrian territory operated by the Islamic State group (IS), per a report from the UK Ministry of Defence.
The location, pinpointed through reconnaissance, was assessed as storing arms and explosives, the statement said, and was situated in mountainous terrain just to the north of Palmyra in the heart of Syria.
"Our aircraft employed Paveway IV guided bombs to strike a several access tunnels leading to the depot... initial indications suggest the objective was successfully hit," officials stated.
There was no sign of any civilian casualties in the attack on Saturday evening and every plane involved returned safely, the MoD added.
The Typhoon FGR4s were backed up by a Voyager aerial refuelling aircraft.
The Islamic State group - alternatively referred to as Daesh - established jihadist rule over parts of Syria and Iraq prior to its 2019 collapse.
"This action shows our UK leadership, and determination to operate in unison with allied nations, to eliminate any re-emergence of the terrorist group and their harmful and extremist ideologies in the region," UK Defence Secretary the minister said.
UK warplanes have performed overwatch operations over Syrian airspace to "forestall any efforts to regroup" of IS subsequent to its defeat at the battle of Baghuz in 2019, the authorities noted.
"I want to thank the personnel of our armed forces who took part in this strike for their professionalism and their valour," he said. "Including them were thousands of UK service members deployed over the festive period. This operation, to take out dangerous terrorists who pose a risk to our security, demonstrates how British military are ready to step up, continuously, protecting the UK at home and powerful internationally."
In December, the US military executed what it called a "massive strike" targeting IS targets in the country, after an ambush resulted in the deaths of two US troops and a civilian linguist in Palmyra.
The United Nations reports Daesh still maintains roughly 5-7 thousand militants in both countries.
