British Air Force Typhoon fighter aircraft have operated alongside French warplanes in a combined operation on an underground arms cache in Syria used by the Islamic State group (IS), according to the UK's MoD.
The site, pinpointed through intelligence, was believed to be housing weapons and explosive materials, the announcement noted, and was located in mountains just north of the ancient city of Palmyra in central Syria.
"The RAF jets utilized precision-guided Paveway IV munitions to hit a series of access tunnels down to the depot... preliminary assessments are that the target was engaged successfully," the ministry announced.
There was no indication of any civilian casualties in the strike late on Saturday and all the aircraft returned to base without incident, the defence officials confirmed.
The British jets were supported by a Voyager refuelling tanker.
IS - referred to as ISIS - established extremist governance over parts of Syria and Iraq until 2019.
"This action demonstrates British leadership, and resolve to operate in unison with our partners, to eliminate any revival of IS and their dangerous and violent ideologies in the region," Britain's Defence Chief the Defence Secretary stated.
RAF aircraft have conducted patrols over Syria to "forestall any attempted resurgence" of the group subsequent to its routing at the battle of Baghuz in the year 2019, the MoD reported.
"I must thank every member of British forces involved in this strike for their professionalism and their courage," he commented. "They were part of a great many British troops stationed over the holidays. This operation, to eliminate terrorist threats who threaten our way of life, shows how our armed forces are always on standby, all year round, protecting the UK domestically and powerful internationally."
In December, the American forces carried out what it described as a "massive strike" on Islamic State objectives in Syria, after an attack resulted in the deaths of two American soldiers and a local interpreter in Palmyra.
The United Nations reports IS still maintains roughly 5-7 thousand fighters in both countries.
