RAF Typhoon fighter aircraft have conducted a mission with France's air force in a joint strike against an hidden munitions depot in Syrian territory used by the Islamic State group (IS), according to the British defence ministry.
The facility, pinpointed through intelligence, was assessed as containing munitions and bombs, the statement said, and was situated in mountains just north of the historic site of Palmyra in central Syria.
"Our fighter planes utilized Paveway IV guided bombs to target a several access tunnels providing entry to the depot... early reports are that the objective was successfully hit," officials stated.
There was no evidence of any harm to civilians in the strike on Saturday evening and each participating jet returned to base without incident, the MoD added.
The Typhoon FGR4s were assisted by a Voyager aerial refuelling aircraft.
IS - alternatively referred to as Daesh - established jihadist rule over significant areas in Syria and Iraq prior to its 2019 collapse.
"This strike demonstrates British leadership, and resolve to stand shoulder to shoulder with our allies, to stamp out any re-emergence of IS and their harmful and extremist ideologies in the area," the British Defence Secretary the minister remarked.
RAF aircraft have carried out overwatch operations over Syrian airspace to "forestall any attempted resurgence" of the group following its defeat at the climactic battle in Baghuz in the year 2019, the ministry said.
"I extend gratitude to all the members of British forces involved in this operation for their professionalism and their valour," the Defence Secretary added. "Including them were numerous UK service members stationed over Christmas and New Year. This mission, to remove dangerous terrorists who pose a risk to our security, shows how UK forces are prepared to act, throughout the year, protecting the UK at home and influential overseas."
In December, the United States armed forces executed what it called a "major assault" against Islamic State objectives in the country, after an attack claimed the lives of two US troops and a local interpreter in Palmyra.
The UN estimates Islamic State still boasts an estimated 5,000 to 7,000 fighters in Iraq and Syria.
