British Air Force Typhoon fighter aircraft have operated alongside French warplanes in a coordinated attack against an subterranean weapons facility in Syria operated by the Daesh militant organization, according to the UK's MoD.
The location, identified by surveillance, was believed to be containing munitions and bombs, the statement said, and was positioned in mountainous terrain just north of the ancient city of Palmyra in the heart of Syria.
"The RAF jets used Paveway IV guided bombs to strike a several approach shafts down to the site... preliminary assessments are that the objective was successfully hit," the ministry announced.
There was no indication of any civilian impact in the operation on Saturday evening and all the aircraft returned safely, the defence officials confirmed.
The Typhoon FGR4s were supported by a Voyager refuelling tanker.
Daesh - alternatively referred to as the so-called Islamic State - enforced extremist governance over parts of both Syria and Iraq before its territorial defeat in 2019.
"This strike underscores the UK's leading role, and resolve to operate in unison with our allies, to eliminate any re-emergence of Daesh and their violent and radical beliefs in the Middle East," UK Defence Secretary the Defence Secretary said.
British military aircraft have conducted patrols over Syria to "prevent any attempted comeback" of IS following its routing at the battle of Baghuz in 2019, the authorities noted.
"I extend gratitude to the personnel of the UK armed forces who took part in this operation for their professionalism and their courage," he said. "They were among thousands of British troops on duty over Christmas and New Year. This action, to remove dangerous terrorists who pose a risk to our safety, shows how our armed forces are prepared to act, continuously, keeping Britain secure within its borders and influential overseas."
During December, the American forces carried out what it called a "large-scale strike" targeting IS targets in the country, following an ambush resulted in the deaths of two US troops and a civilian linguist in Palmyra.
The U.N. estimates IS still maintains roughly 5-7 thousand combatants in both countries.
