British Air Force Typhoon jets have joined forces with French warplanes in a joint strike on an underground arms cache in Syria used by the Islamic State group (IS), as stated by the UK's MoD.
The site, identified by intelligence, was thought to be housing weapons and explosive materials, the announcement noted, and was situated in mountainous terrain just north of the ancient city of Palmyra in central Syria.
"Our aircraft employed precision-guided Paveway IV munitions to hit a several approach shafts leading to the facility... early reports suggest the objective was successfully hit," the ministry announced.
There was no sign of any civilian casualties in the operation conducted Saturday night and each participating jet made a safe return, the defence officials confirmed.
The Typhoon fighters were supported by a Voyager aerial refuelling aircraft.
The Islamic State group - alternatively referred to as ISIS - established militant control over large swathes of both Syria and Iraq until 2019.
"This operation underscores our UK leadership, and resolve to stand shoulder to shoulder with allied nations, to eliminate any revival of IS and their dangerous and violent ideologies in the region," the British Defence Secretary the minister stated.
British military aircraft have performed surveillance missions over Syria to "prevent any attempted resurgence" of Islamic State subsequent to its routing at the climactic battle in Baghuz in 2019, the MoD reported.
"I extend gratitude to all the members of the UK armed forces involved in this mission for their skill and their bravery," the Defence Secretary commented. "Including them were thousands of UK service members on duty over Christmas and New Year. This mission, to eliminate dangerous terrorists who pose a risk to our way of life, shows how UK forces are ready to step up, continuously, protecting the UK domestically and strong abroad."
During December, the American forces conducted what it called a "major assault" on Islamic State objectives in Syria, subsequent to an attack resulted in the deaths of two US troops and a civilian interpreter in Palmyra.
The U.N. estimates Daesh still has an estimated 5,000 to 7,000 fighters in Iraq and Syria.
