British Air Force Typhoon jets have joined forces with French aircraft in a combined operation on an underground arms cache in Syria operated by the Islamic State group (IS), according to the UK's MoD.
The site, identified by intelligence, was believed to be containing munitions and bombs, the release indicated, and was positioned in mountainous terrain just above the ancient city of Palmyra in the heart of Syria.
"Our aircraft utilized laser-guided Paveway IV weapons to strike a several approach shafts providing entry to the site... preliminary assessments are that the objective was successfully hit," the ministry announced.
There was no indication of any harm to civilians in the operation on Saturday evening and all the aircraft made a safe return, the defence officials confirmed.
The Typhoon fighters were supported by a Voyager refuelling tanker.
Daesh - referred to as the so-called Islamic State - imposed militant control over parts of Syria and Iraq before its territorial defeat in 2019.
"This action demonstrates our UK leadership, and determination to work closely with our allies, to eliminate any revival of IS and their dangerous and violent ideologies in the region," the British Defence Secretary John Healey said.
British military aircraft have performed surveillance missions over Syria to "prevent any attempted resurgence" of Islamic State following its routing at the Baghuz confrontation in 2019, the MoD reported.
"I extend gratitude to the personnel of our armed forces who took part in this mission for their expertise and their courage," the Defence Secretary added. "Including them were a great many UK service members on duty over Christmas and New Year. This action, to take out terrorist threats who pose a risk to our security, demonstrates how British military are ready to step up, throughout the year, protecting the UK at home and influential overseas."
Last December, the United States armed forces executed what it termed a "major assault" targeting IS targets in Syria, following an attack killed two American soldiers and a civilian interpreter in Palmyra.
The U.N. says Daesh still maintains an estimated 5,000 to 7,000 combatants in Iraq and Syria.
