Royal Air Force Typhoon jets have conducted a mission with French warplanes in a joint strike on an hidden munitions depot in Syrian territory used by the IS group, as stated by the UK's MoD.
The facility, pinpointed through intelligence, was assessed as housing weapons and explosive materials, the statement said, and was positioned in mountainous terrain just above the historic site of Palmyra in the heart of Syria.
"The RAF jets employed precision-guided Paveway IV munitions to target a several access tunnels down to the depot... initial indications suggest the strike was effective," officials stated.
There was no sign of any civilian impact in the strike on Saturday evening and every plane involved made a safe return, the defence officials confirmed.
The British jets were assisted by a Voyager tanker plane.
Daesh - also known as the so-called Islamic State - established extremist governance over significant areas in Syria and Iraq prior to its 2019 collapse.
"This action underscores the UK's leading role, and commitment to work closely with our partners, to stamp out any resurgence of the terrorist group and their harmful and extremist ideologies in the Middle East," Britain's Defence Chief the minister remarked.
UK warplanes have performed patrols over Syrian airspace to "prevent any attempted comeback" of Islamic State subsequent to its routing at the Baghuz confrontation in 2019, the authorities noted.
"I extend gratitude to all the members of our armed forces who took part in this mission for their skill and their bravery," Healey commented. "They were part of thousands of British troops on duty over the holidays. This operation, to remove terrorist threats who endanger our security, demonstrates how our armed forces are always on standby, all year round, keeping Britain secure domestically and influential overseas."
During December, the United States armed forces executed what it described as a "massive strike" against Islamic State objectives in the country, following an assault killed two US servicemembers and a local interpreter in the Palmyra area.
The U.N. estimates Daesh still maintains roughly 5-7 thousand combatants in Iraq and Syria.
