British Air Force Typhoon fighter aircraft have joined forces with France's air force in a joint strike against an subterranean weapons facility in Syria employed by the Islamic State group (IS), according to the British defence ministry.
The facility, identified by surveillance, was believed to be containing munitions and bombs, the statement said, and was positioned in hills just to the north of the ancient city of Palmyra in Syria's central region.
"The RAF jets utilized precision-guided Paveway IV munitions to hit a several access tunnels leading to the site... early reports are that the objective was successfully hit," the MoD said.
There was no sign of any harm to civilians in the attack on Saturday evening and each participating jet returned safely, the defence officials confirmed.
The Typhoon fighters were backed up by a Voyager refuelling tanker.
The Islamic State group - alternatively referred to as Daesh - enforced jihadist rule over significant areas in Syria and Iraq until 2019.
"This strike demonstrates our UK leadership, and resolve to operate in unison with our partners, to eliminate any resurgence of Daesh and their harmful and extremist ideologies in the Middle East," UK Defence Secretary the Defence Secretary stated.
RAF aircraft have carried out overwatch operations over Syria to "deter any attempted comeback" of IS after its military defeat at the climactic battle in Baghuz in 2019, the MoD reported.
"I extend gratitude to the personnel of British forces participating in this strike for their skill and their valour," Healey added. "Including them were a great many UK service members deployed over the holidays. This mission, to remove dangerous terrorists who threaten our safety, shows how UK forces are always on standby, continuously, ensuring Britain's security at home and influential overseas."
Last December, the United States armed forces conducted what it called a "major assault" on IS targets in Syria, after an attack resulted in the deaths of two US servicemembers and a civilian linguist in the Palmyra area.
The U.N. says Islamic State still has between 5,000 and 7,000 combatants in Iraq and Syria.
