Royal Air Force Typhoon fighter aircraft have operated alongside French aircraft in a combined operation on an subterranean weapons facility in Syria employed by the Daesh militant organization, according to the UK's MoD.
The site, pinpointed through intelligence, was believed to be storing arms and explosives, the release indicated, and was positioned in mountainous terrain just to the north of the ancient city of Palmyra in the heart of Syria.
"The RAF jets utilized Paveway IV guided bombs to target a number of entry passages providing entry to the site... preliminary assessments suggest the strike was effective," the MoD said.
There was no indication of any civilian impact in the operation on Saturday evening and all the aircraft made a safe return, the MoD added.
The Typhoon FGR4s were backed up by a Voyager aerial refuelling aircraft.
Daesh - alternatively referred to as ISIS - imposed militant control over parts of Iraq and Syria prior to its 2019 collapse.
"This operation shows British leadership, and resolve to operate in unison with our allies, to eliminate any revival of Daesh and their dangerous and violent ideologies in the region," UK Defence Secretary the Defence Secretary remarked.
RAF aircraft have performed overwatch operations over Syria to "forestall any attempted comeback" of Islamic State after its defeat at the Baghuz confrontation in the year 2019, the authorities noted.
"I want to thank all the members of British forces involved in this mission for their expertise and their bravery," the Defence Secretary commented. "Including them were thousands of UK service members stationed over the festive period. This mission, to eliminate dangerous terrorists who threaten our safety, highlights how UK forces are ready to step up, all year round, protecting the UK domestically and powerful internationally."
During December, the United States armed forces executed what it described as a "large-scale strike" targeting Islamic State objectives in Syria, after an ambush claimed the lives of two American soldiers and a civilian interpreter in the Palmyra area.
The United Nations estimates Daesh still has roughly 5-7 thousand militants in Syria and Iraq.
