British Air Force Typhoon FGR4s have conducted a mission with France's air force in a combined operation targeting an subterranean weapons facility in Syria employed by the Islamic State group (IS), according to the British defence ministry.
The site, pinpointed through surveillance, was believed to be housing weapons and explosive materials, the release indicated, and was positioned in mountains just north of Palmyra in central Syria.
"The RAF jets utilized precision-guided Paveway IV munitions to hit a number of access tunnels down to the site... initial indications are that the strike was effective," the ministry announced.
There was no sign of any harm to civilians in the strike late on Saturday and each participating jet returned to base without incident, the MoD added.
The British jets were backed up by a Voyager refuelling tanker.
IS - referred to as ISIS - enforced extremist governance over large swathes of Iraq and Syria before its territorial defeat in 2019.
"This action demonstrates our UK leadership, and commitment to stand shoulder to shoulder with our partners, to eliminate any revival of IS and their harmful and extremist ideologies in the area," Britain's Defence Chief John Healey remarked.
UK warplanes have carried out patrols over Syria to "prevent any efforts to regroup" of IS after its routing at the Baghuz confrontation in 2019, the authorities noted.
"I extend gratitude to all the members of British forces who took part in this strike for their expertise and their valour," Healey added. "Including them were numerous UK service members on duty over the festive period. This mission, to eliminate terrorist threats who endanger our safety, demonstrates how UK forces are ready to step up, all year round, keeping Britain secure within its borders and strong abroad."
In December, the American forces conducted what it called a "massive strike" on IS targets in the country, after an assault killed two US troops and a local interpreter in the Palmyra area.
The U.N. reports IS still has roughly 5-7 thousand militants in both countries.
