Royal Air Force Typhoon jets have conducted a mission with French aircraft in a joint strike targeting an subterranean weapons facility in Syrian territory used by the Islamic State group (IS), as stated by the British defence ministry.
The facility, identified by surveillance, was assessed as storing arms and explosives, the statement said, and was situated in mountains just to the north of Palmyra in Syria's central region.
"Our aircraft utilized precision-guided Paveway IV munitions to strike a series of entry passages down to the facility... preliminary assessments indicate the objective was successfully hit," officials stated.
There was no indication of any harm to civilians in the attack late on Saturday and every plane involved returned to base without incident, the defence officials confirmed.
The Typhoon FGR4s were backed up by a Voyager aerial refuelling aircraft.
Daesh - alternatively referred to as the so-called Islamic State - imposed militant control over parts of both Syria and Iraq prior to its 2019 collapse.
"This operation underscores the UK's leading role, and resolve to operate in unison with our allies, to stamp out any re-emergence of the terrorist group and their harmful and extremist ideologies in the Middle East," Britain's Defence Chief John Healey remarked.
RAF aircraft have performed surveillance missions over Syria to "forestall any efforts to regroup" of the group following its routing at the climactic battle in Baghuz in the year 2019, the authorities noted.
"I want to thank every member of British forces who took part in this mission for their professionalism and their courage," the Defence Secretary added. "Including them were numerous British troops on duty over the festive period. This action, to remove terrorist threats who pose a risk to our safety, highlights how UK forces are ready to step up, all year round, keeping Britain secure at home and powerful internationally."
Last December, the American forces executed what it described as a "massive strike" targeting IS targets in the country, subsequent to an assault claimed the lives of two US servicemembers and a civilian linguist in the Palmyra area.
The U.N. reports Islamic State still maintains roughly 5-7 thousand combatants in Syria and Iraq.
