RAF Typhoon FGR4s have conducted a mission with French warplanes in a combined operation targeting an subterranean weapons facility in Syrian territory operated by the Daesh militant organization, according to the British defence ministry.
The site, pinpointed through intelligence, was believed to be containing munitions and bombs, the statement said, and was positioned in hills just north of the ancient city of Palmyra in central Syria.
"Our fighter planes utilized precision-guided Paveway IV munitions to hit a number of access tunnels leading to the depot... early reports indicate the strike was effective," officials stated.
There was no evidence of any civilian casualties in the strike conducted Saturday night and all the aircraft returned to base without incident, the MoD added.
The Typhoon fighters were backed up by a Voyager aerial refuelling aircraft.
Daesh - referred to as the so-called Islamic State - established jihadist rule over parts of Iraq and Syria prior to its 2019 collapse.
"This action demonstrates the UK's leading role, and resolve to operate in unison with our allies, to eliminate any resurgence of IS and their violent and radical beliefs in the area," UK Defence Secretary the minister stated.
British military aircraft have carried out patrols over Syrian airspace to "deter any efforts to regroup" of the group after its routing at the Baghuz confrontation in the year 2019, the MoD reported.
"I extend gratitude to the personnel of the UK armed forces involved in this strike for their professionalism and their courage," Healey commented. "They were among thousands of British personnel on duty over Christmas and New Year. This mission, to remove militants who endanger our safety, demonstrates how British military are always on standby, continuously, ensuring Britain's security within its borders and powerful internationally."
Last December, the US military executed what it described as a "major assault" on Daesh sites in Syria, after an assault claimed the lives of two US servicemembers and a local interpreter in Palmyra.
The U.N. estimates Daesh still has an estimated 5,000 to 7,000 militants in both countries.
