RAF Typhoon fighter aircraft have conducted a mission with French warplanes in a joint strike on an hidden munitions depot in Syria operated by the Islamic State group (IS), as stated by the British defence ministry.
The location, located using intelligence, was assessed as storing arms and explosives, the statement said, and was positioned in mountains just north of Palmyra in central Syria.
"Our aircraft used Paveway IV guided bombs to hit a series of approach shafts leading to the depot... initial indications indicate the target was engaged successfully," the ministry announced.
There was no evidence of any civilian impact in the operation late on Saturday and each participating jet returned to base without incident, the MoD added.
The British jets were backed up by a Voyager tanker plane.
The Islamic State group - alternatively referred to as the so-called Islamic State - imposed militant control over significant areas in both Syria and Iraq prior to its 2019 collapse.
"This operation demonstrates our UK leadership, and commitment to work closely with our allies, to eradicate any revival of the terrorist group and their dangerous and violent ideologies in the region," UK Defence Secretary the Defence Secretary said.
RAF aircraft have performed surveillance missions over Syria to "forestall any attempted resurgence" of IS following its routing at the climactic battle in Baghuz in 2019, the MoD reported.
"I must thank all the members of British forces who took part in this mission for their skill and their courage," he commented. "They were among a great many British troops on duty over Christmas and New Year. This mission, to eliminate terrorist threats who endanger our way of life, shows how British military are ready to step up, continuously, protecting the UK at home and influential overseas."
In December, the United States armed forces executed what it called a "large-scale strike" on Daesh sites in Syria, after an attack claimed the lives of two US troops and a civilian linguist in Palmyra.
The UN says Islamic State still boasts an estimated 5,000 to 7,000 militants in Iraq and Syria.
