Royal Air Force Typhoon FGR4s have joined forces with French aircraft in a combined operation targeting an hidden munitions depot in Syria employed by the Islamic State group (IS), according to the British defence ministry.
The facility, located using reconnaissance, was believed to be storing arms and explosives, the statement said, and was situated in hills just to the north of the ancient city of Palmyra in Syria's central region.
"The RAF jets utilized Paveway IV guided bombs to strike a several entry passages leading to the depot... preliminary assessments suggest the strike was effective," the ministry announced.
There was no sign of any civilian casualties in the strike late on Saturday and every plane involved returned safely, the MoD added.
The Typhoon fighters were supported by a Voyager aerial refuelling aircraft.
The Islamic State group - referred to as the so-called Islamic State - established extremist governance over significant areas in Iraq and Syria before its territorial defeat in 2019.
"This action shows British leadership, and resolve to operate in unison with allied nations, to stamp out any resurgence of Daesh and their harmful and extremist ideologies in the Middle East," the British Defence Secretary the Defence Secretary remarked.
UK warplanes have carried out surveillance missions over Syrian airspace to "forestall any attempted resurgence" of IS following its routing at the battle of Baghuz in the year 2019, the authorities noted.
"I must thank the personnel of the UK armed forces involved in this strike for their skill and their valour," Healey added. "They were part of numerous British troops stationed over Christmas and New Year. This operation, to remove terrorist threats who pose a risk to our security, highlights how our armed forces are prepared to act, continuously, protecting the UK within its borders and strong abroad."
In December, the American forces carried out what it described as a "large-scale strike" on Daesh sites in Syria, subsequent to an assault resulted in the deaths of two American soldiers and a civilian interpreter in Palmyra.
The United Nations reports IS still maintains between 5,000 and 7,000 fighters in Syria and Iraq.
