British Air Force Typhoon FGR4s have conducted a mission with French aircraft in a coordinated attack against an hidden munitions depot in Syrian territory used by the Islamic State group (IS), per a report from the British defence ministry.
The location, identified by reconnaissance, was thought to be housing weapons and explosive materials, the statement said, and was situated in mountains just above the ancient city of Palmyra in the heart of Syria.
"Our fighter planes utilized precision-guided Paveway IV munitions to target a series of access tunnels leading to the site... early reports suggest the strike was effective," the ministry announced.
There was no evidence of any civilian casualties in the operation on Saturday evening and each participating jet returned to base without incident, the ministry further stated.
The British jets were backed up by a Voyager aerial refuelling aircraft.
IS - referred to as Daesh - enforced militant control over large swathes of Iraq and Syria before its territorial defeat in 2019.
"This strike underscores the UK's leading role, and commitment to operate in unison with allied nations, to stamp out any resurgence of IS and their harmful and extremist ideologies in the region," UK Defence Secretary the minister remarked.
UK warplanes have carried out overwatch operations over Syria to "prevent any attempted resurgence" of Islamic State after its routing at the climactic battle in Baghuz in 2019, the ministry said.
"I want to thank the personnel of our armed forces involved in this operation for their professionalism and their courage," he said. "They were among thousands of UK service members stationed over the festive period. This operation, to remove terrorist threats who threaten our way of life, demonstrates how our armed forces are prepared to act, all year round, keeping Britain secure domestically and powerful internationally."
During December, the American forces executed what it termed a "massive strike" against Daesh sites in Syria, following an assault claimed the lives of two US troops and a local interpreter in the Palmyra area.
The UN estimates Islamic State still has between 5,000 and 7,000 combatants in Syria and Iraq.
