British Air Force Typhoon jets have joined forces with French warplanes in a combined operation targeting an subterranean weapons facility in Syrian territory employed by the IS group, according to the UK's MoD.
The location, pinpointed through intelligence, was thought to be housing weapons and explosive materials, the statement said, and was located in mountains just north of the historic site of Palmyra in central Syria.
"Our fighter planes employed precision-guided Paveway IV munitions to target a several approach shafts leading to the facility... early reports suggest the strike was effective," the ministry announced.
There was no evidence of any civilian casualties in the operation on Saturday evening and every plane involved made a safe return, the MoD added.
The Typhoon FGR4s were assisted by a Voyager refuelling tanker.
IS - referred to as the so-called Islamic State - established extremist governance over large swathes of Iraq and Syria before its territorial defeat in 2019.
"This operation demonstrates British leadership, and commitment to stand shoulder to shoulder with our allies, to stamp out any resurgence of IS and their dangerous and violent ideologies in the area," the British Defence Secretary John Healey stated.
RAF aircraft have conducted overwatch operations over Syrian airspace to "forestall any efforts to regroup" of Islamic State after its routing at the Baghuz confrontation in 2019, the authorities noted.
"I extend gratitude to the personnel of the UK armed forces involved in this operation for their skill and their courage," he commented. "They were among a great many British troops on duty over the holidays. This operation, to eliminate militants who pose a risk to our security, highlights how our armed forces are prepared to act, continuously, ensuring Britain's security domestically and influential overseas."
During December, the US military conducted what it described as a "major assault" targeting IS targets in the country, after an assault resulted in the deaths of two US servicemembers and a civilian interpreter in Palmyra.
The U.N. estimates IS still maintains roughly 5-7 thousand combatants in Iraq and Syria.
