British Air Force Typhoon FGR4s have conducted a mission with French aircraft in a joint strike targeting an hidden munitions depot in Syria operated by the Daesh militant organization, as stated by the UK Ministry of Defence.
The location, pinpointed through intelligence, was believed to be storing arms and explosives, the release indicated, and was located in hills just to the north of the historic site of Palmyra in Syria's central region.
"The RAF jets utilized laser-guided Paveway IV weapons to strike a several access tunnels leading to the site... early reports suggest the strike was effective," the MoD said.
There was no sign of any civilian impact in the strike on Saturday evening and each participating jet returned to base without incident, the MoD added.
The British jets were supported by a Voyager refuelling tanker.
IS - alternatively referred to as Daesh - established extremist governance over parts of Syria and Iraq prior to its 2019 collapse.
"This action underscores the UK's leading role, and determination to stand shoulder to shoulder with our partners, to eliminate any re-emergence of Daesh and their harmful and extremist ideologies in the area," UK Defence Secretary John Healey stated.
British military aircraft have conducted overwatch operations over Syrian airspace to "prevent any efforts to regroup" of IS subsequent to its military defeat at the Baghuz confrontation in the year 2019, the authorities noted.
"I extend gratitude to the personnel of British forces involved in this operation for their expertise and their bravery," he added. "They were among numerous British troops on duty over Christmas and New Year. This mission, to remove terrorist threats who pose a risk to our safety, highlights how UK forces are always on standby, all year round, ensuring Britain's security domestically and strong abroad."
In December, the US military carried out what it described as a "major assault" targeting Islamic State objectives in the country, after an ambush resulted in the deaths of two US servicemembers and a civilian linguist in Palmyra.
The UN reports Daesh still has roughly 5-7 thousand fighters in both countries.
