Royal Air Force Typhoon fighter aircraft have operated alongside French aircraft in a coordinated attack against an underground arms cache in Syrian territory employed by the Daesh militant organization, as stated by the UK Ministry of Defence.
The location, pinpointed through surveillance, was thought to be storing arms and explosives, the announcement noted, and was located in mountains just above the historic site of Palmyra in central Syria.
"Our fighter planes employed laser-guided Paveway IV weapons to hit a number of approach shafts down to the site... preliminary assessments suggest the objective was successfully hit," officials stated.
There was no sign of any civilian casualties in the attack on Saturday evening and each participating jet made a safe return, the defence officials confirmed.
The Typhoon fighters were backed up by a Voyager aerial refuelling aircraft.
IS - referred to as Daesh - imposed jihadist rule over large swathes of Syria and Iraq until 2019.
"This operation underscores British leadership, and resolve to operate in unison with our partners, to eradicate any revival of IS and their violent and radical beliefs in the region," UK Defence Secretary the Defence Secretary said.
British military aircraft have conducted surveillance missions over Syrian airspace to "deter any attempted resurgence" of Islamic State after its military defeat at the battle of Baghuz in 2019, the ministry said.
"I extend gratitude to every member of the UK armed forces involved in this strike for their skill and their courage," the Defence Secretary said. "They were part of a great many British personnel on duty over the festive period. This action, to take out dangerous terrorists who threaten our way of life, shows how our armed forces are always on standby, throughout the year, keeping Britain secure at home and influential overseas."
In December, the American forces executed what it termed a "massive strike" targeting IS targets in the country, subsequent to an attack resulted in the deaths of two American soldiers and a local interpreter in the Palmyra area.
The UN says Daesh still maintains roughly 5-7 thousand militants in Iraq and Syria.
