Royal Air Force Typhoon jets have conducted a mission with France's air force in a coordinated attack against an hidden munitions depot in Syria employed by the Daesh militant organization, per a report from the UK's MoD.
The location, identified by intelligence, was assessed as housing weapons and explosive materials, the announcement noted, and was situated in mountains just north of Palmyra in the heart of Syria.
"Our aircraft used precision-guided Paveway IV munitions to target a several access tunnels providing entry to the facility... initial indications are that the target was engaged successfully," officials stated.
There was no sign of any civilian casualties in the operation conducted Saturday night and every plane involved made a safe return, the MoD added.
The Typhoon fighters were backed up by a Voyager refuelling tanker.
The Islamic State group - referred to as ISIS - enforced militant control over large swathes of Iraq and Syria until 2019.
"This operation demonstrates the UK's leading role, and resolve to operate in unison with our allies, to eliminate any re-emergence of the terrorist group and their dangerous and violent ideologies in the region," Britain's Defence Chief John Healey remarked.
UK warplanes have performed overwatch operations over Syrian airspace to "prevent any efforts to regroup" of the group subsequent to its military defeat at the Baghuz confrontation in the year 2019, the ministry said.
"I must thank every member of our armed forces who took part in this operation for their expertise and their bravery," the Defence Secretary added. "They were among numerous UK service members on duty over the festive period. This operation, to eliminate terrorist threats who threaten our security, demonstrates how our armed forces are always on standby, throughout the year, ensuring Britain's security at home and powerful internationally."
In December, the United States armed forces carried out what it called a "large-scale strike" on Islamic State objectives in the country, subsequent to an attack killed two US servicemembers and a civilian interpreter in the Palmyra area.
The United Nations reports Islamic State still boasts roughly 5-7 thousand militants in Iraq and Syria.
