Royal Air Force Typhoon FGR4s have joined forces with French aircraft in a coordinated attack against an underground arms cache in Syria employed by the Islamic State group (IS), according to the British defence ministry.
The facility, located using reconnaissance, was thought to be containing munitions and bombs, the announcement noted, and was positioned in hills just north of the ancient city of Palmyra in central Syria.
"The RAF jets utilized precision-guided Paveway IV munitions to strike a several access tunnels down to the site... early reports suggest the objective was successfully hit," officials stated.
There was no indication of any harm to civilians in the attack conducted Saturday night and every plane involved made a safe return, the MoD added.
The Typhoon fighters were backed up by a Voyager tanker plane.
Daesh - referred to as Daesh - enforced extremist governance over large swathes of Syria and Iraq prior to its 2019 collapse.
"This strike underscores the UK's leading role, and determination to stand shoulder to shoulder with our allies, to eliminate any resurgence of Daesh and their violent and radical beliefs in the area," UK Defence Secretary the minister remarked.
RAF aircraft have performed overwatch operations over Syrian airspace to "forestall any attempted resurgence" of Islamic State following its military defeat at the Baghuz confrontation in 2019, the authorities noted.
"I want to thank the personnel of British forces who took part in this mission for their skill and their courage," Healey commented. "They were among numerous British troops deployed over Christmas and New Year. This operation, to remove terrorist threats who endanger our way of life, demonstrates how British military are prepared to act, continuously, keeping Britain secure domestically and strong abroad."
During December, the American forces conducted what it called a "major assault" against Daesh sites in the country, subsequent to an assault claimed the lives of two US servicemembers and a civilian linguist in the Palmyra area.
The U.N. says Islamic State still maintains between 5,000 and 7,000 fighters in Iraq and Syria.
