RAF Typhoon fighter aircraft have joined forces with French aircraft in a coordinated attack against an underground arms cache in Syria employed by the IS group, per a report from the UK Ministry of Defence.
The site, identified by reconnaissance, was assessed as housing weapons and explosive materials, the statement said, and was situated in hills just to the north of Palmyra in central Syria.
"Our fighter planes employed laser-guided Paveway IV weapons to strike a number of entry passages leading to the depot... preliminary assessments are that the objective was successfully hit," the ministry announced.
There was no sign of any civilian casualties in the operation on Saturday evening and each participating jet returned to base without incident, the MoD added.
The Typhoon FGR4s were backed up by a Voyager refuelling tanker.
The Islamic State group - referred to as the so-called Islamic State - enforced militant control over large swathes of Syria and Iraq until 2019.
"This action shows our UK leadership, and determination to work closely with our partners, to stamp out any re-emergence of Daesh and their dangerous and violent ideologies in the Middle East," the British Defence Secretary the minister said.
UK warplanes have carried out patrols over Syrian airspace to "prevent any attempted resurgence" of Islamic State subsequent to its defeat at the battle of Baghuz in 2019, the ministry said.
"I extend gratitude to the personnel of British forces who took part in this mission for their skill and their bravery," the Defence Secretary commented. "They were among a great many British troops on duty over the holidays. This mission, to remove dangerous terrorists who endanger our way of life, demonstrates how our armed forces are prepared to act, continuously, protecting the UK at home and powerful internationally."
Last December, the American forces carried out what it called a "large-scale strike" targeting IS targets in Syria, following an attack resulted in the deaths of two US servicemembers and a civilian linguist in the Palmyra area.
The UN says IS still maintains between 5,000 and 7,000 combatants in both countries.
