RAF Typhoon fighter aircraft have joined forces with French warplanes in a combined operation on an subterranean weapons facility in Syria used by the Islamic State group (IS), according to the British defence ministry.
The site, located using intelligence, was believed to be storing arms and explosives, the statement said, and was positioned in mountains just above Palmyra in central Syria.
"The RAF jets used precision-guided Paveway IV munitions to target a series of approach shafts leading to the facility... preliminary assessments are that the strike was effective," the ministry announced.
There was no evidence of any civilian impact in the strike on Saturday evening and each participating jet returned to base without incident, the MoD added.
The Typhoon FGR4s were assisted by a Voyager tanker plane.
IS - also known as ISIS - enforced jihadist rule over parts of both Syria and Iraq prior to its 2019 collapse.
"This operation shows British leadership, and resolve to operate in unison with allied nations, to stamp out any resurgence of IS and their harmful and extremist ideologies in the area," the British Defence Secretary John Healey remarked.
RAF aircraft have carried out overwatch operations over Syrian airspace to "prevent any attempted comeback" of IS following its routing at the climactic battle in Baghuz in the year 2019, the MoD reported.
"I extend gratitude to every member of our armed forces involved in this strike for their skill and their valour," the Defence Secretary commented. "They were part of a great many British troops on duty over the holidays. This action, to eliminate terrorist threats who pose a risk to our security, shows how UK forces are always on standby, throughout the year, protecting the UK within its borders and strong abroad."
During December, the American forces carried out what it described as a "large-scale strike" on Islamic State objectives in the country, after an assault claimed the lives of two US troops and a civilian linguist in the Palmyra area.
The U.N. says Islamic State still has roughly 5-7 thousand fighters in both countries.
