British Air Force Typhoon FGR4s have conducted a mission with 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 Ministry of Defence.
The location, identified by surveillance, was assessed as storing arms and explosives, the statement said, and was located in mountainous terrain just north of the ancient city of Palmyra in central Syria.
"Our fighter planes utilized precision-guided Paveway IV munitions to target a several entry passages leading to the site... preliminary assessments indicate the objective was successfully hit," the MoD said.
There was no sign of any harm to civilians in the strike on Saturday evening and all the aircraft returned safely, the MoD added.
The Typhoon FGR4s were assisted by a Voyager refuelling tanker.
The Islamic State group - also known as the so-called Islamic State - enforced extremist governance over parts of Syria and Iraq before its territorial defeat in 2019.
"This strike underscores the UK's leading role, and determination to operate in unison with our partners, to eliminate any revival of Daesh and their harmful and extremist ideologies in the area," UK Defence Secretary John Healey remarked.
RAF aircraft have performed patrols over Syrian airspace to "prevent any attempted resurgence" of IS after its routing at the climactic battle in Baghuz in 2019, the MoD reported.
"I want to thank the personnel of British forces who took part in this operation for their expertise and their courage," Healey said. "They were part of thousands of British personnel on duty over the festive period. This mission, to take out dangerous terrorists who threaten our safety, demonstrates how our armed forces are ready to step up, throughout the year, protecting the UK domestically and strong abroad."
During December, the US military conducted what it described as a "massive strike" targeting IS targets in the country, following an assault claimed the lives of two US servicemembers and a civilian interpreter in the Palmyra area.
The U.N. reports Islamic State still boasts roughly 5-7 thousand fighters in Syria and Iraq.
