British Air Force Typhoon jets have conducted a mission with France's air force in a joint strike on an underground arms cache in Syrian territory employed by the Daesh militant organization, according to the British defence ministry.
The site, pinpointed through surveillance, was assessed as housing weapons and explosive materials, the release indicated, and was situated in mountains just above the historic site of Palmyra in the heart of Syria.
"Our fighter planes utilized precision-guided Paveway IV munitions to strike a series of access tunnels leading to the facility... initial indications suggest the strike was effective," the MoD said.
There was no indication of any harm to civilians in the strike on Saturday evening and each participating jet made a safe return, the MoD added.
The British jets were assisted by a Voyager refuelling tanker.
IS - also known as ISIS - enforced extremist governance over significant areas in Syria and Iraq before its territorial defeat in 2019.
"This strike demonstrates British leadership, and determination to operate in unison with allied nations, to eliminate any re-emergence of the terrorist group and their violent and radical beliefs in the Middle East," the British Defence Secretary John Healey stated.
UK warplanes have carried out surveillance missions over Syrian airspace to "prevent any attempted resurgence" of the group subsequent to its defeat at the climactic battle in Baghuz in 2019, the ministry said.
"I extend gratitude to every member of British forces involved in this mission for their expertise and their valour," Healey added. "They were among thousands of UK service members on duty over the holidays. This mission, to take out terrorist threats who threaten our security, shows how UK forces are ready to step up, throughout the year, protecting the UK at home and strong abroad."
During December, the United States armed forces conducted what it described as a "large-scale strike" on IS targets in Syria, subsequent to an assault claimed the lives of two American soldiers and a civilian linguist in Palmyra.
The UN reports Daesh still has roughly 5-7 thousand militants in Syria and Iraq.
