British Air Force Typhoon FGR4s have joined forces with French aircraft in a combined operation on an underground arms cache in Syria used by the Islamic State group (IS), as stated by the British defence ministry.
The site, located using intelligence, was assessed as storing arms and explosives, the release indicated, and was positioned in mountainous terrain just north of the ancient city of Palmyra in central Syria.
"The RAF jets employed precision-guided Paveway IV munitions to hit a series of access tunnels leading to the depot... initial indications suggest the target was engaged successfully," the ministry announced.
There was no sign of any harm to civilians in the attack on Saturday evening and every plane involved returned to base without incident, the ministry further stated.
The British jets were assisted by a Voyager refuelling tanker.
IS - also known as Daesh - imposed jihadist rule over parts of Syria and Iraq prior to its 2019 collapse.
"This action underscores British leadership, and determination to work closely with our partners, to eradicate any revival of IS and their harmful and extremist ideologies in the area," UK Defence Secretary John Healey stated.
British military aircraft have carried out overwatch operations over Syria to "forestall any attempted comeback" of IS after its routing at the Baghuz confrontation in 2019, the MoD reported.
"I extend gratitude to the personnel of our armed forces who took part in this strike for their expertise and their bravery," Healey said. "Including them were thousands of British troops stationed over the festive period. This action, to remove dangerous terrorists who endanger our safety, shows how British military are always on standby, all year round, protecting the UK domestically and influential overseas."
During December, the United States armed forces conducted what it described as a "large-scale strike" targeting Daesh sites in the country, subsequent to an ambush killed two US servicemembers and a civilian linguist in the Palmyra area.
The United Nations reports Daesh still maintains between 5,000 and 7,000 fighters in both countries.
