Royal Air Force Typhoon fighter aircraft have operated alongside French warplanes in a joint strike against an subterranean weapons facility in Syria used by the Islamic State group (IS), per a report from the UK's MoD.
The facility, located using surveillance, was believed to be containing munitions and bombs, the release indicated, and was located in mountains just north of the historic site of Palmyra in central Syria.
"The RAF jets used Paveway IV guided bombs to hit a series of approach shafts providing entry to the facility... preliminary assessments suggest the objective was successfully hit," the ministry announced.
There was no sign of any civilian impact in the strike conducted Saturday night and every plane involved returned safely, the ministry further stated.
The Typhoon fighters were supported by a Voyager tanker plane.
Daesh - also known as the so-called Islamic State - imposed jihadist rule over significant areas in Syria and Iraq prior to its 2019 collapse.
"This action demonstrates the UK's leading role, and commitment to operate in unison with our partners, to eliminate any revival of IS and their violent and radical beliefs in the Middle East," Britain's Defence Chief the minister stated.
RAF aircraft have conducted patrols over Syrian airspace to "forestall any attempted resurgence" of the group following its defeat at the Baghuz confrontation in 2019, the ministry said.
"I want to thank all the members of our armed forces participating in this operation for their professionalism and their courage," Healey said. "They were part of thousands of British personnel deployed over Christmas and New Year. This action, to take out terrorist threats who pose a risk to our way of life, demonstrates how UK forces are always on standby, continuously, protecting the UK within its borders and influential overseas."
In December, the United States armed forces executed what it called a "major assault" targeting IS targets in the country, after an ambush killed two US servicemembers and a civilian interpreter in the Palmyra area.
The U.N. says IS still boasts roughly 5-7 thousand combatants in Syria and Iraq.
