RAF Typhoon jets have operated alongside French aircraft in a combined operation targeting an subterranean weapons facility in Syria operated by the Islamic State group (IS), per a report from the British defence ministry.
The facility, pinpointed through surveillance, was believed to be housing weapons and explosive materials, the statement said, and was located in mountainous terrain just to the north of the ancient city of Palmyra in Syria's central region.
"Our aircraft employed laser-guided Paveway IV weapons to target a number of entry passages leading to the depot... initial indications are that the strike was effective," officials stated.
There was no evidence of any harm to civilians in the operation on Saturday evening and every plane involved returned safely, the defence officials confirmed.
The British jets were supported by a Voyager tanker plane.
IS - alternatively referred to as the so-called Islamic State - enforced extremist governance over significant areas in both Syria and Iraq prior to its 2019 collapse.
"This operation demonstrates British leadership, and resolve to stand shoulder to shoulder with our allies, to eliminate any revival of the terrorist group and their harmful and extremist ideologies in the region," Britain's Defence Chief the minister said.
UK warplanes have carried out patrols over Syrian airspace to "prevent any attempted comeback" of IS following its military defeat at the battle of Baghuz in 2019, the ministry said.
"I want to thank all the members of our armed forces who took part in this operation for their professionalism and their valour," he added. "They were part of thousands of British personnel deployed over the holidays. This operation, to remove terrorist threats who pose a risk to our safety, highlights how British military are always on standby, continuously, protecting the UK within its borders and influential overseas."
In December, the US military executed what it called a "large-scale strike" on IS targets in Syria, subsequent to an ambush killed two US troops and a local interpreter in the Palmyra area.
The U.N. reports Islamic State still maintains roughly 5-7 thousand combatants in both countries.
