Royal Air Force Typhoon fighter aircraft have operated alongside France's air force in a joint strike against an subterranean weapons facility in Syria operated by the Islamic State group (IS), according to the UK Ministry of Defence.
The facility, located using reconnaissance, was believed to be containing munitions and bombs, the release indicated, and was positioned in mountains just to the north of the historic site of Palmyra in central Syria.
"Our aircraft used precision-guided Paveway IV munitions to hit a several approach shafts leading to the site... early reports are that the objective was successfully hit," the MoD said.
There was no sign of any civilian impact in the operation conducted Saturday night and every plane involved made a safe return, the MoD added.
The British jets were assisted by a Voyager aerial refuelling aircraft.
Daesh - alternatively referred to as Daesh - imposed extremist governance over large swathes of Syria and Iraq before its territorial defeat in 2019.
"This action shows the UK's leading role, and commitment to stand shoulder to shoulder with our allies, to eradicate any resurgence of Daesh and their harmful and extremist ideologies in the region," Britain's Defence Chief the Defence Secretary stated.
British military aircraft have carried out patrols over Syrian airspace to "forestall any attempted resurgence" of IS following its defeat at the Baghuz confrontation in the year 2019, the ministry said.
"I want to thank all the members of the UK armed forces who took part in this strike for their professionalism and their valour," the Defence Secretary said. "They were among numerous UK service members on duty over the festive period. This mission, to take out terrorist threats who pose a risk to our way of life, shows how our armed forces are ready to step up, throughout the year, protecting the UK domestically and strong abroad."
During December, the United States armed forces conducted what it termed a "large-scale strike" against Islamic State objectives in the country, following an attack killed two American soldiers and a civilian interpreter in Palmyra.
The U.N. says Islamic State still has roughly 5-7 thousand militants in Syria and Iraq.
