Royal Air Force Typhoon fighter aircraft have operated alongside French warplanes in a coordinated attack targeting an hidden munitions depot in Syria used by the Islamic State group (IS), per a report from the UK's MoD.
The location, pinpointed through reconnaissance, was believed to be housing weapons and explosive materials, the announcement noted, and was located in mountainous terrain just to the north of the ancient city of Palmyra in Syria's central region.
"The RAF jets used laser-guided Paveway IV weapons to strike a series of approach shafts down to the site... early reports indicate the objective was successfully hit," the MoD said.
There was no evidence of any harm to civilians in the attack conducted Saturday night and every plane involved returned safely, the defence officials confirmed.
The British jets were supported by a Voyager tanker plane.
Daesh - referred to as Daesh - established extremist governance over significant areas in Syria and Iraq until 2019.
"This operation demonstrates our UK leadership, and commitment to work closely with our partners, to stamp out any resurgence of IS and their harmful and extremist ideologies in the region," UK Defence Secretary John Healey remarked.
UK warplanes have carried out surveillance missions over Syria to "deter any attempted resurgence" of the group following its defeat at the Baghuz confrontation in 2019, the MoD reported.
"I must thank all the members of our armed forces participating in this mission for their expertise and their courage," Healey added. "They were among numerous UK service members on duty over the festive period. This action, to remove militants who pose a risk to our safety, shows how our armed forces are always on standby, continuously, protecting the UK within its borders and strong abroad."
Last December, the American forces carried out what it called a "large-scale strike" against Islamic State objectives in Syria, subsequent to an ambush resulted in the deaths of two American soldiers and a civilian interpreter in the Palmyra area.
The United Nations says Islamic State still has between 5,000 and 7,000 combatants in Iraq and Syria.
