British Air Force Typhoon jets have conducted a mission with French warplanes in a joint strike on an subterranean weapons facility in Syrian territory used by the Islamic State group (IS), as stated by the British defence ministry.
The facility, pinpointed through surveillance, was believed to be housing weapons and explosive materials, the statement said, and was positioned in mountains just above Palmyra in central Syria.
"Our fighter planes utilized Paveway IV guided bombs to strike a number of entry passages leading to the site... preliminary assessments are that the target was engaged successfully," the ministry announced.
There was no evidence of any civilian impact in the operation conducted Saturday night and every plane involved made a safe return, the defence officials confirmed.
The Typhoon fighters were backed up by a Voyager tanker plane.
Daesh - alternatively referred to as the so-called Islamic State - enforced extremist governance over large swathes of Syria and Iraq until 2019.
"This strike underscores British leadership, and resolve to work closely with allied nations, to stamp out any resurgence of IS and their harmful and extremist ideologies in the area," the British Defence Secretary John Healey said.
British military aircraft have conducted overwatch operations over Syria to "deter any attempted resurgence" of the group after its routing at the climactic battle in Baghuz in 2019, the MoD reported.
"I must thank the personnel of the UK armed forces who took part in this strike for their professionalism and their bravery," the Defence Secretary added. "They were among thousands of UK service members deployed over Christmas and New Year. This operation, to take out militants who pose a risk to our way of life, demonstrates how our armed forces are prepared to act, continuously, ensuring Britain's security within its borders and strong abroad."
Last December, the United States armed forces executed what it described as a "large-scale strike" against IS targets in the country, following an ambush killed two US troops and a civilian interpreter in Palmyra.
The U.N. says Islamic State still has roughly 5-7 thousand combatants in Syria and Iraq.
