Royal Air Force Typhoon fighter aircraft have conducted a mission with French warplanes in a coordinated attack against an underground arms cache in Syrian territory operated by the Daesh militant organization, according to the British defence ministry.
The site, located using reconnaissance, was believed to be housing weapons and explosive materials, the release indicated, and was located in mountainous terrain just north of Palmyra in the heart of Syria.
"Our aircraft employed Paveway IV guided bombs to target a series of entry passages down to the facility... initial indications suggest the objective was successfully hit," the ministry announced.
There was no evidence of any civilian casualties in the strike conducted Saturday night and each participating jet made a safe return, the ministry further stated.
The Typhoon fighters were supported by a Voyager aerial refuelling aircraft.
Daesh - alternatively referred to as ISIS - enforced extremist governance over parts of both Syria and Iraq before its territorial defeat in 2019.
"This strike underscores our UK leadership, and resolve to stand shoulder to shoulder with our allies, to stamp out any revival of IS and their violent and radical beliefs in the region," UK Defence Secretary the minister stated.
UK warplanes have performed patrols over Syria to "deter any attempted resurgence" of the group after its routing at the Baghuz confrontation in the year 2019, the MoD reported.
"I must thank all the members of the UK armed forces involved in this mission for their expertise and their valour," Healey added. "They were part of thousands of UK service members stationed over Christmas and New Year. This action, to remove terrorist threats who threaten our safety, demonstrates how British military are prepared to act, continuously, keeping Britain secure domestically and strong abroad."
In December, the United States armed forces conducted what it described as a "major assault" targeting Islamic State objectives in Syria, after an attack killed two US servicemembers and a civilian linguist in the Palmyra area.
The U.N. reports IS still has an estimated 5,000 to 7,000 militants in Iraq and Syria.
