Royal Air Force Typhoon fighter aircraft have conducted a mission with French warplanes in a coordinated attack on an subterranean weapons facility in Syria operated by the Islamic State group (IS), as stated by the UK Ministry of Defence.
The site, located using reconnaissance, was assessed as storing arms and explosives, the statement said, and was positioned in mountains just above the historic site of Palmyra in central Syria.
"The RAF jets utilized precision-guided Paveway IV munitions to hit a number of entry passages providing entry to the facility... initial indications suggest the objective was successfully hit," the MoD said.
There was no indication of any civilian casualties in the attack conducted Saturday night and every plane involved returned safely, the ministry further stated.
The Typhoon FGR4s were backed up by a Voyager aerial refuelling aircraft.
IS - also known as ISIS - imposed extremist governance over large swathes of both Syria and Iraq prior to its 2019 collapse.
"This action shows the UK's leading role, and determination to operate in unison with allied nations, to stamp out any re-emergence of IS and their dangerous and violent ideologies in the Middle East," the British Defence Secretary the Defence Secretary remarked.
RAF aircraft have carried out patrols over Syrian airspace to "prevent any attempted resurgence" of the group following its routing at the Baghuz confrontation in 2019, the authorities noted.
"I want to thank every member of the UK armed forces participating in this operation for their expertise and their courage," Healey said. "They were part of a great many British troops deployed over the festive period. This action, to eliminate militants who endanger our safety, shows how British military are prepared to act, all year round, protecting the UK within its borders and influential overseas."
In December, the US military executed what it called a "major assault" on Daesh sites in the country, following an assault claimed the lives of two US servicemembers and a local interpreter in Palmyra.
The United Nations estimates IS still maintains roughly 5-7 thousand fighters in Iraq and Syria.
