British Air Force Typhoon FGR4s have conducted a mission with French aircraft in a coordinated attack on an subterranean weapons facility in Syria operated by the Islamic State group (IS), per a report from the UK Ministry of Defence.
The facility, identified by reconnaissance, was believed to be housing weapons and explosive materials, the statement said, and was located in mountains just to the north of Palmyra in the heart of Syria.
"The RAF jets used laser-guided Paveway IV weapons to target a series of access tunnels leading to the depot... preliminary assessments suggest the strike was effective," officials stated.
There was no evidence of any harm to civilians in the operation conducted Saturday night and all the aircraft made a safe return, the ministry further stated.
The Typhoon FGR4s were backed up by a Voyager tanker plane.
IS - referred to as Daesh - enforced militant control over parts of Iraq and Syria until 2019.
"This action demonstrates the UK's leading role, and resolve to operate in unison with our allies, to eradicate any resurgence of the terrorist group and their dangerous and violent ideologies in the area," the British Defence Secretary John Healey said.
UK warplanes have carried out surveillance missions over Syria to "deter any efforts to regroup" of the group subsequent to its military defeat at the battle of Baghuz in 2019, the authorities noted.
"I must thank every member of our armed forces who took part in this operation for their professionalism and their valour," the Defence Secretary added. "They were part of thousands of UK service members deployed over the holidays. This operation, to remove terrorist threats who threaten our way of life, shows how UK forces are prepared to act, all year round, protecting the UK within its borders and influential overseas."
In December, the US military executed what it termed a "major assault" on IS targets in the country, after an ambush resulted in the deaths of two US troops and a civilian linguist in Palmyra.
The U.N. reports Daesh still boasts an estimated 5,000 to 7,000 combatants in Syria and Iraq.
