British Air Force Typhoon jets have conducted a mission with French aircraft in a joint strike against an hidden munitions depot in Syria employed by the Islamic State group (IS), per a report from the British defence ministry.
The location, identified by surveillance, was thought to be containing munitions and bombs, the statement said, and was located in mountainous terrain just above the historic site of Palmyra in Syria's central region.
"Our fighter planes used Paveway IV guided bombs to hit a series of access tunnels providing entry to the site... preliminary assessments indicate the target was engaged successfully," the MoD said.
There was no evidence of any harm to civilians in the operation conducted Saturday night and all the aircraft returned safely, the defence officials confirmed.
The British jets were assisted by a Voyager tanker plane.
Daesh - alternatively referred to as Daesh - enforced extremist governance over significant areas in Syria and Iraq prior to its 2019 collapse.
"This strike shows our UK leadership, and commitment to operate in unison with our partners, to eliminate any re-emergence of the terrorist group and their harmful and extremist ideologies in the area," the British Defence Secretary the minister stated.
RAF aircraft have carried out surveillance missions over Syria to "deter any efforts to regroup" of the group after its defeat at the battle of Baghuz in 2019, the authorities noted.
"I extend gratitude to the personnel of our armed forces involved in this operation for their expertise and their valour," Healey said. "Including them were thousands of UK service members deployed over the holidays. This mission, to eliminate militants who endanger our way of life, shows how our armed forces are always on standby, throughout the year, ensuring Britain's security at home and strong abroad."
During December, the US military executed what it termed a "massive strike" targeting IS targets in Syria, following an attack claimed the lives of two US servicemembers and a civilian linguist in the Palmyra area.
The United Nations estimates Daesh still maintains roughly 5-7 thousand militants in both countries.
