British Air Force Typhoon fighter aircraft have joined forces with French aircraft in a combined operation against an subterranean weapons facility in Syria used by the Daesh militant organization, per a report from the UK's MoD.
The location, pinpointed through intelligence, was assessed as housing weapons and explosive materials, the statement said, and was located in mountains just to the north of the historic site of Palmyra in the heart of Syria.
"The RAF jets employed precision-guided Paveway IV munitions to strike a number of entry passages down to the site... initial indications suggest the objective was successfully hit," officials stated.
There was no evidence of any civilian casualties in the strike conducted Saturday night and each participating jet returned safely, the MoD added.
The Typhoon fighters were backed up by a Voyager refuelling tanker.
IS - also known as the so-called Islamic State - imposed militant control over parts of both Syria and Iraq prior to its 2019 collapse.
"This action underscores the UK's leading role, and resolve to work closely with our allies, to stamp out any re-emergence of IS and their dangerous and violent ideologies in the area," Britain's Defence Chief John Healey said.
UK warplanes have carried out surveillance missions over Syrian airspace to "prevent any efforts to regroup" of the group subsequent to its defeat at the climactic battle in Baghuz in 2019, the ministry said.
"I must thank all the members of the UK armed forces participating in this strike for their professionalism and their courage," the Defence Secretary commented. "Including them were a great many UK service members stationed over Christmas and New Year. This mission, to remove militants who endanger our security, demonstrates how our armed forces are prepared to act, throughout the year, protecting the UK within its borders and influential overseas."
Last December, the US military carried out what it described as a "large-scale strike" against Islamic State objectives in Syria, subsequent to an ambush claimed the lives of two American soldiers and a civilian interpreter in Palmyra.
The U.N. says Islamic State still boasts an estimated 5,000 to 7,000 fighters in Iraq and Syria.
