British Air Force Typhoon fighter aircraft have joined forces with French warplanes in a joint strike targeting an hidden munitions depot in Syrian territory used by the Islamic State group (IS), per a report from the British defence ministry.
The facility, located using surveillance, was assessed as containing munitions and bombs, the statement said, and was situated in mountainous terrain just to the north of the ancient city of Palmyra in Syria's central region.
"Our fighter planes used laser-guided Paveway IV weapons to hit a number of approach shafts down to the depot... preliminary assessments indicate the objective was successfully hit," the ministry announced.
There was no evidence of any civilian impact in the strike conducted Saturday night and all the aircraft returned to base without incident, the defence officials confirmed.
The British jets were supported by a Voyager refuelling tanker.
IS - alternatively referred to as Daesh - enforced jihadist rule over large swathes of both Syria and Iraq until 2019.
"This strike shows our UK leadership, and commitment to operate in unison with allied nations, to stamp out any revival of IS and their violent and radical beliefs in the Middle East," UK Defence Secretary the Defence Secretary stated.
British military aircraft have carried out patrols over Syrian airspace to "forestall any attempted resurgence" of the group after its routing at the battle of Baghuz in 2019, the ministry said.
"I extend gratitude to the personnel of British forces participating in this strike for their professionalism and their valour," he said. "They were part of a great many UK service members deployed over Christmas and New Year. This mission, to take out terrorist threats who endanger our way of life, demonstrates how UK forces are prepared to act, continuously, keeping Britain secure domestically and influential overseas."
During December, the American forces conducted what it termed a "large-scale strike" against IS targets in Syria, subsequent to an attack killed two American soldiers and a civilian interpreter in Palmyra.
The U.N. reports IS still has between 5,000 and 7,000 combatants in Syria and Iraq.
