British Air Force Typhoon jets have operated alongside French warplanes in a joint strike on an subterranean weapons facility in Syria employed by the Daesh militant organization, per a report from the UK Ministry of Defence.
The location, identified by reconnaissance, was thought to be containing munitions and bombs, the statement said, and was positioned in hills just above Palmyra in the heart of Syria.
"The RAF jets used Paveway IV guided bombs to hit a number of access tunnels leading to the site... preliminary assessments indicate the objective was successfully hit," the MoD said.
There was no sign of any civilian impact in the strike conducted Saturday night and every plane involved returned to base without incident, the MoD added.
The Typhoon fighters were backed up by a Voyager refuelling tanker.
Daesh - also known as Daesh - imposed jihadist rule over significant areas in Iraq and Syria prior to its 2019 collapse.
"This strike demonstrates British leadership, and commitment to operate in unison with our partners, to eliminate any revival of IS and their harmful and extremist ideologies in the region," the British Defence Secretary John Healey stated.
RAF aircraft have performed surveillance missions over Syria to "prevent any attempted comeback" of the group subsequent to its defeat at the Baghuz confrontation in the year 2019, the MoD reported.
"I extend gratitude to the personnel of British forces who took part in this mission for their skill and their valour," the Defence Secretary said. "They were among a great many UK service members stationed over the holidays. This mission, to eliminate terrorist threats who pose a risk to our safety, shows how UK forces are always on standby, all year round, ensuring Britain's security at home and strong abroad."
Last December, the US military executed what it termed a "massive strike" targeting Islamic State objectives in Syria, following an attack claimed the lives of two US troops and a local interpreter in the Palmyra area.
The United Nations reports Islamic State still boasts an estimated 5,000 to 7,000 combatants in Iraq and Syria.
