Royal Air Force Typhoon FGR4s have joined forces with French warplanes in a combined operation targeting an underground arms cache in Syria employed by the IS group, as stated by the UK Ministry of Defence.
The facility, pinpointed through surveillance, was thought to be storing arms and explosives, the statement said, and was located in mountainous terrain just to the north of the ancient city of Palmyra in Syria's central region.
"Our fighter planes used Paveway IV guided bombs to target a number of entry passages leading to the facility... initial indications are that the target was engaged successfully," officials stated.
There was no evidence of any civilian casualties in the strike conducted Saturday night and every plane involved returned safely, the defence officials confirmed.
The Typhoon fighters were supported by a Voyager refuelling tanker.
IS - referred to as Daesh - imposed militant control over large swathes of Syria and Iraq before its territorial defeat in 2019.
"This strike underscores British leadership, and commitment to stand shoulder to shoulder with our allies, to eliminate any re-emergence of IS and their dangerous and violent ideologies in the area," the British Defence Secretary the minister stated.
UK warplanes have conducted patrols over Syria to "prevent any efforts to regroup" of the group subsequent to its routing at the battle of Baghuz in 2019, the authorities noted.
"I want to thank all the members of British forces involved in this mission for their expertise and their bravery," the Defence Secretary added. "They were part of thousands of British personnel on duty over the festive period. This mission, to take out militants who endanger our security, shows how British military are prepared to act, continuously, keeping Britain secure within its borders and strong abroad."
During December, the US military conducted what it called a "large-scale strike" against IS targets in the country, following an assault claimed the lives of two US servicemembers and a civilian linguist in Palmyra.
The United Nations says IS still maintains an estimated 5,000 to 7,000 fighters in Iraq and Syria.
