Royal Air Force Typhoon fighter aircraft have operated alongside French warplanes in a joint strike on an underground arms cache in Syrian territory employed by the Daesh militant organization, according to the UK's MoD.
The location, located using intelligence, was believed to be housing weapons and explosive materials, the release indicated, and was situated in mountainous terrain just to the north of the ancient city of Palmyra in the heart of Syria.
"Our aircraft employed Paveway IV guided bombs to target a series of entry passages providing entry to the depot... preliminary assessments indicate the strike was effective," officials stated.
There was no sign of any civilian impact in the strike conducted Saturday night and each participating jet returned to base without incident, the MoD added.
The Typhoon FGR4s were assisted by a Voyager aerial refuelling aircraft.
The Islamic State group - referred to as Daesh - established militant control over significant areas in both Syria and Iraq before its territorial defeat in 2019.
"This strike shows the UK's leading role, and commitment to stand shoulder to shoulder with our partners, to stamp out any resurgence of the terrorist group and their dangerous and violent ideologies in the area," UK Defence Secretary John Healey said.
UK warplanes have carried out patrols over Syrian airspace to "forestall any efforts to regroup" of Islamic State following its defeat at the Baghuz confrontation in 2019, the ministry said.
"I extend gratitude to the personnel of British forces participating in this strike for their expertise and their courage," Healey commented. "They were among numerous British troops deployed over Christmas and New Year. This action, to take out terrorist threats who pose a risk to our way of life, demonstrates how British military are always on standby, continuously, ensuring Britain's security within its borders and influential overseas."
Last December, the United States armed forces executed what it termed a "large-scale strike" on Daesh sites in the country, following an attack resulted in the deaths of two US servicemembers and a civilian interpreter in Palmyra.
The U.N. says Islamic State still maintains between 5,000 and 7,000 combatants in both countries.
