Royal Air Force Typhoon jets have operated alongside France's air force in a coordinated attack against an subterranean weapons facility in Syria employed by the Islamic State group (IS), according to the British defence ministry.
The facility, identified by intelligence, was assessed as containing munitions and bombs, the release indicated, and was located in mountains just north of the ancient city of Palmyra in central Syria.
"Our aircraft employed Paveway IV guided bombs to target a number of entry passages providing entry to the site... initial indications suggest the target was engaged successfully," officials stated.
There was no sign of any civilian impact in the strike on Saturday evening and every plane involved returned to base without incident, the MoD added.
The Typhoon fighters were supported by a Voyager tanker plane.
IS - also known as Daesh - imposed jihadist rule over significant areas in Iraq and Syria prior to its 2019 collapse.
"This action demonstrates British leadership, and commitment to work closely with our allies, to eradicate any re-emergence of IS and their dangerous and violent ideologies in the region," the British Defence Secretary the minister stated.
RAF aircraft have carried out patrols over Syria to "forestall any efforts to regroup" of IS following its routing at the Baghuz confrontation in the year 2019, the MoD reported.
"I must thank the personnel of the UK armed forces participating in this strike for their professionalism and their courage," the Defence Secretary said. "They were part of numerous UK service members stationed over Christmas and New Year. This mission, to remove terrorist threats who endanger our safety, highlights how British military are always on standby, throughout the year, keeping Britain secure within its borders and powerful internationally."
During December, the US military carried out what it termed a "major assault" on Daesh sites in the country, following an attack killed two American soldiers and a civilian linguist in the Palmyra area.
The United Nations says Daesh still has roughly 5-7 thousand combatants in Iraq and Syria.
