RAF Typhoon FGR4s have conducted a mission with French warplanes in a joint strike targeting an subterranean weapons facility in Syria used by the Islamic State group (IS), per a report from the British defence ministry.
The site, pinpointed through intelligence, was believed to be storing arms and explosives, the statement said, and was positioned in mountainous terrain just north of the ancient city of Palmyra in Syria's central region.
"Our aircraft utilized precision-guided Paveway IV munitions to target a series of approach shafts providing entry to the depot... preliminary assessments are that the target was engaged successfully," the MoD said.
There was no indication of any civilian casualties in the attack late on Saturday and each participating jet returned safely, the defence officials confirmed.
The British jets were backed up by a Voyager aerial refuelling aircraft.
Daesh - also known as ISIS - enforced jihadist rule over significant areas in Iraq and Syria before its territorial defeat in 2019.
"This strike demonstrates the UK's leading role, and determination to work closely with our partners, to eliminate any re-emergence of the terrorist group and their dangerous and violent ideologies in the Middle East," the British Defence Secretary the Defence Secretary said.
RAF aircraft have carried out overwatch operations over Syria to "deter any efforts to regroup" of IS following its defeat at the climactic battle in Baghuz in 2019, the authorities noted.
"I must thank the personnel of our armed forces participating in this operation for their professionalism and their courage," he added. "They were among numerous British personnel deployed over Christmas and New Year. This action, to take out dangerous terrorists who threaten our way of life, demonstrates how our armed forces are ready to step up, throughout the year, protecting the UK at home and powerful internationally."
In December, the United States armed forces conducted what it called a "massive strike" against Islamic State objectives in Syria, following an attack resulted in the deaths of two US servicemembers and a local interpreter in Palmyra.
The U.N. reports Daesh still has an estimated 5,000 to 7,000 militants in Syria and Iraq.
