British Air Force Typhoon jets have joined forces with French aircraft in a joint strike against an hidden munitions depot in Syrian territory employed by the Daesh militant organization, as stated by the British defence ministry.
The location, identified by surveillance, was thought to be housing weapons and explosive materials, the announcement noted, and was situated in mountainous terrain just to the north of the ancient city of Palmyra in the heart of Syria.
"Our fighter planes employed precision-guided Paveway IV munitions to strike a series of approach shafts leading to the facility... preliminary assessments suggest the strike was effective," the MoD said.
There was no sign of any civilian impact in the strike late on Saturday and every plane involved returned to base without incident, the MoD added.
The British jets were backed up by a Voyager tanker plane.
Daesh - also known as the so-called Islamic State - enforced jihadist rule over significant areas in Syria and Iraq prior to its 2019 collapse.
"This action demonstrates our UK leadership, and determination to stand shoulder to shoulder with our allies, to eliminate any re-emergence of the terrorist group and their harmful and extremist ideologies in the area," UK Defence Secretary the minister said.
RAF aircraft have performed patrols over Syrian airspace to "prevent any attempted comeback" of Islamic State following its defeat at the battle of Baghuz in 2019, the ministry said.
"I must thank every member of British forces involved in this mission for their professionalism and their bravery," he added. "They were among a great many UK service members stationed over the festive period. This action, to eliminate dangerous terrorists who endanger our safety, demonstrates how British military are ready to step up, throughout the year, ensuring Britain's security domestically and influential overseas."
In December, the United States armed forces carried out what it described as a "massive strike" on Islamic State objectives in Syria, following an ambush resulted in the deaths of two US troops and a civilian linguist in Palmyra.
The U.N. reports Islamic State still has an estimated 5,000 to 7,000 fighters in Syria and Iraq.
