British Air Force Typhoon fighter aircraft have joined forces with France's air force in a combined operation on an subterranean weapons facility in Syria employed by the Daesh militant organization, as stated by the British defence ministry.
The location, pinpointed through surveillance, was believed to be housing weapons and explosive materials, the release indicated, and was positioned in hills just north of Palmyra in central Syria.
"Our fighter planes employed Paveway IV guided bombs to target a several approach shafts leading to the facility... preliminary assessments indicate the target was engaged successfully," the ministry announced.
There was no evidence of any harm to civilians in the attack conducted Saturday night and all the aircraft returned to base without incident, the ministry further stated.
The Typhoon fighters were supported by a Voyager aerial refuelling aircraft.
Daesh - also known as ISIS - enforced extremist governance over large swathes of Iraq and Syria until 2019.
"This operation demonstrates the UK's leading role, and commitment to work closely with allied nations, to eliminate any re-emergence of the terrorist group and their harmful and extremist ideologies in the Middle East," Britain's Defence Chief the Defence Secretary stated.
RAF aircraft have performed surveillance missions over Syrian airspace to "forestall any attempted comeback" of the group subsequent to its defeat at the climactic battle in Baghuz in the year 2019, the authorities noted.
"I must thank all the members of British forces involved in this operation for their skill and their courage," the Defence Secretary commented. "They were part of thousands of British personnel deployed over Christmas and New Year. This action, to eliminate dangerous terrorists who endanger our safety, highlights how British military are prepared to act, continuously, protecting the UK within its borders and strong abroad."
During December, the American forces executed what it termed a "large-scale strike" on IS targets in the country, following an attack killed two US troops and a civilian linguist in the Palmyra area.
The UN reports IS still boasts an estimated 5,000 to 7,000 fighters in both countries.
