Royal Air Force Typhoon fighter aircraft have conducted a mission with France's air force in a joint strike targeting an underground arms cache in Syria used by the IS group, as stated by the UK's MoD.
The site, located using surveillance, was believed to be housing weapons and explosive materials, the release indicated, and was situated in mountainous terrain just to the north of Palmyra in Syria's central region.
"Our aircraft used precision-guided Paveway IV munitions to hit a series of access tunnels providing entry to the depot... preliminary assessments are that the strike was effective," the ministry announced.
There was no indication of any civilian casualties in the strike conducted Saturday night and all the aircraft made a safe return, the defence officials confirmed.
The Typhoon fighters were assisted by a Voyager refuelling tanker.
IS - referred to as Daesh - established militant control over parts of Iraq and Syria before its territorial defeat in 2019.
"This operation underscores our UK leadership, and commitment to operate in unison with our allies, to eradicate any re-emergence of IS and their harmful and extremist ideologies in the region," Britain's Defence Chief the minister remarked.
UK warplanes have performed surveillance missions over Syria to "deter any efforts to regroup" of Islamic State subsequent to its defeat at the battle of Baghuz in 2019, the authorities noted.
"I must thank the personnel of British forces involved in this operation for their professionalism and their bravery," the Defence Secretary commented. "They were part of thousands of UK service members deployed over the festive period. This mission, to take out terrorist threats who endanger our way of life, demonstrates how British military are always on standby, throughout the year, keeping Britain secure at home and influential overseas."
Last December, the American forces carried out what it termed a "massive strike" on Islamic State objectives in the country, following an assault resulted in the deaths of two American soldiers and a civilian interpreter in Palmyra.
The U.N. reports Daesh still maintains an estimated 5,000 to 7,000 combatants in Syria and Iraq.
