British Air Force Typhoon jets have conducted a mission with France's air force in a coordinated attack against an hidden munitions depot in Syrian territory used by the Daesh militant organization, per a report from the British defence ministry.
The site, identified by reconnaissance, was thought to be storing arms and explosives, the statement said, and was positioned in mountains just above Palmyra in central Syria.
"The RAF jets utilized precision-guided Paveway IV munitions to strike a number of access tunnels leading to the depot... preliminary assessments suggest the objective was successfully hit," officials stated.
There was no evidence of any civilian casualties in the operation conducted Saturday night and each participating jet made a safe return, the ministry further stated.
The British jets were backed up by a Voyager refuelling tanker.
Daesh - referred to as the so-called Islamic State - imposed jihadist rule over significant areas in both Syria and Iraq until 2019.
"This strike demonstrates our UK leadership, and resolve to stand shoulder to shoulder with our partners, to stamp out any revival of Daesh and their harmful and extremist ideologies in the region," UK Defence Secretary the minister stated.
UK warplanes have carried out overwatch operations over Syria to "deter any attempted resurgence" of the group following its defeat at the Baghuz confrontation in 2019, the MoD reported.
"I must thank the personnel of the UK armed forces who took part in this operation for their professionalism and their courage," he commented. "They were among thousands of UK service members stationed over Christmas and New Year. This mission, to remove militants who endanger our way of life, demonstrates how UK forces are always on standby, throughout the year, protecting the UK domestically and influential overseas."
During December, the American forces conducted what it termed a "massive strike" on Islamic State objectives in Syria, following an assault killed two US troops and a local interpreter in the Palmyra area.
The U.N. reports IS still has between 5,000 and 7,000 militants in Iraq and Syria.
