Royal Air Force Typhoon fighter aircraft have operated alongside France's air force in a joint strike on an hidden munitions depot in Syria employed by the Daesh militant organization, per a report from the UK Ministry of Defence.
The location, pinpointed through surveillance, was believed to be housing weapons and explosive materials, the announcement noted, and was situated in mountains just north of Palmyra in central Syria.
"Our aircraft employed precision-guided Paveway IV munitions to hit a series of access tunnels leading to the site... preliminary assessments are that the target was engaged successfully," officials stated.
There was no indication of any harm to civilians in the operation late on Saturday and every plane involved returned safely, the defence officials confirmed.
The Typhoon FGR4s were assisted by a Voyager refuelling tanker.
IS - alternatively referred to as ISIS - established jihadist rule over significant areas in Iraq and Syria prior to its 2019 collapse.
"This action underscores the UK's leading role, and commitment to stand shoulder to shoulder with allied nations, to eliminate any revival of Daesh and their dangerous and violent ideologies in the Middle East," Britain's Defence Chief John Healey stated.
UK warplanes have carried out patrols over Syrian airspace to "prevent any attempted comeback" of Islamic State following its military defeat at the Baghuz confrontation in 2019, the MoD reported.
"I extend gratitude to every member of our armed forces involved in this operation for their professionalism and their valour," Healey said. "Including them were thousands of UK service members deployed over the holidays. This operation, to eliminate dangerous terrorists who threaten our security, demonstrates how British military are ready to step up, throughout the year, protecting the UK within its borders and strong abroad."
During December, the United States armed forces carried out what it termed a "major assault" on Daesh sites in Syria, subsequent to an ambush claimed the lives of two US troops and a civilian linguist in Palmyra.
The UN says Daesh still boasts between 5,000 and 7,000 militants in both countries.
