British Air Force Typhoon fighter aircraft have operated alongside French aircraft in a combined operation against an hidden munitions depot in Syrian territory employed by the Islamic State group (IS), as stated by the British defence ministry.
The site, pinpointed through surveillance, was thought to be storing arms and explosives, the announcement noted, and was located in mountainous terrain just to the north of the ancient city of Palmyra in Syria's central region.
"Our fighter planes employed laser-guided Paveway IV weapons to hit a number of entry passages leading to the depot... preliminary assessments indicate the target was engaged successfully," the ministry announced.
There was no sign of any civilian impact in the attack on Saturday evening and all the aircraft made a safe return, the MoD added.
The Typhoon fighters were assisted by a Voyager tanker plane.
Daesh - also known as the so-called Islamic State - imposed jihadist rule over large swathes of Syria and Iraq before its territorial defeat in 2019.
"This action demonstrates our UK leadership, and determination to work closely with our allies, to stamp out any resurgence of IS and their harmful and extremist ideologies in the Middle East," UK Defence Secretary the minister stated.
British military aircraft have carried out overwatch operations over Syrian airspace to "forestall any attempted resurgence" of the group after its military defeat at the climactic battle in Baghuz in the year 2019, the MoD reported.
"I want to thank all the members of our armed forces participating in this operation for their professionalism and their courage," Healey said. "They were part of thousands of British troops deployed over the holidays. This action, to take out terrorist threats who pose a risk to our way of life, shows how our armed forces are ready to step up, all year round, protecting the UK within its borders and strong abroad."
During December, the United States armed forces conducted what it termed a "major assault" against Daesh sites in Syria, subsequent to an attack claimed the lives of two US servicemembers and a civilian linguist in the Palmyra area.
The U.N. says IS still boasts roughly 5-7 thousand militants in Syria and Iraq.
