British Air Force Typhoon FGR4s have conducted a mission with French aircraft in a joint strike on an underground arms cache in Syria employed by the Daesh militant organization, per a report from the UK Ministry of Defence.
The location, pinpointed through reconnaissance, was assessed as containing munitions and bombs, the release indicated, and was situated in mountainous terrain just north of Palmyra in Syria's central region.
"Our fighter planes utilized laser-guided Paveway IV weapons to strike a series of entry passages leading to the depot... preliminary assessments suggest the objective was successfully hit," officials stated.
There was no indication of any harm to civilians in the strike on Saturday evening and all the aircraft returned safely, the defence officials confirmed.
The Typhoon FGR4s were supported by a Voyager refuelling tanker.
IS - also known as Daesh - imposed jihadist rule over parts of Syria and Iraq prior to its 2019 collapse.
"This strike underscores our UK leadership, and resolve to operate in unison with our allies, to eradicate any re-emergence of the terrorist group and their violent and radical beliefs in the Middle East," the British Defence Secretary the minister remarked.
RAF aircraft have conducted patrols over Syrian airspace to "forestall any efforts to regroup" of IS following its defeat at the battle of Baghuz in 2019, the ministry said.
"I must thank every member of our armed forces involved in this operation for their professionalism and their valour," the Defence Secretary commented. "They were among a great many UK service members stationed over Christmas and New Year. This mission, to remove dangerous terrorists who threaten our way of life, shows how our armed forces are ready to step up, all year round, ensuring Britain's security at home and influential overseas."
In December, the American forces carried out what it termed a "large-scale strike" on Daesh sites in Syria, after an attack killed two US troops and a civilian linguist in Palmyra.
The United Nations estimates Daesh still has roughly 5-7 thousand fighters in Iraq and Syria.
