RAF Typhoon fighter aircraft have joined forces with French warplanes in a coordinated attack against an hidden munitions depot in Syrian territory used by the Islamic State group (IS), per a report from the British defence ministry.
The location, pinpointed through reconnaissance, was thought to be containing munitions and bombs, the release indicated, and was situated in hills just to the north of Palmyra in central Syria.
"The RAF jets utilized precision-guided Paveway IV munitions to strike a series of access tunnels down to the depot... initial indications indicate the strike was effective," officials stated.
There was no evidence of any civilian casualties in the operation on Saturday evening and all the aircraft returned to base without incident, the defence officials confirmed.
The Typhoon fighters were backed up by a Voyager tanker plane.
The Islamic State group - referred to as Daesh - established militant control over parts of both Syria and Iraq until 2019.
"This operation demonstrates our UK leadership, and commitment to stand shoulder to shoulder with our allies, to eliminate any revival of the terrorist group and their harmful and extremist ideologies in the Middle East," the British Defence Secretary the Defence Secretary stated.
UK warplanes have carried out overwatch operations over Syrian airspace to "prevent any efforts to regroup" of the group following its routing at the Baghuz confrontation in 2019, the ministry said.
"I must thank all the members of the UK armed forces involved in this operation for their professionalism and their valour," he commented. "They were among thousands of British personnel deployed over the festive period. This mission, to eliminate militants who endanger our security, demonstrates how British military are prepared to act, continuously, protecting the UK domestically and powerful internationally."
During December, the United States armed forces carried out what it described as a "major assault" on IS targets in Syria, after an attack resulted in the deaths of two American soldiers and a civilian interpreter in Palmyra.
The U.N. says Daesh still has an estimated 5,000 to 7,000 fighters in Iraq and Syria.
