British Air Force Typhoon fighter aircraft have joined forces with French aircraft in a joint strike against an subterranean weapons facility in Syrian territory operated by the IS group, per a report from the British defence ministry.
The location, pinpointed through surveillance, was believed to be housing weapons and explosive materials, the announcement noted, and was located in mountainous terrain just north of the historic site of Palmyra in Syria's central region.
"Our fighter planes utilized laser-guided Paveway IV weapons to hit a several entry passages providing entry to the site... preliminary assessments suggest the objective was successfully hit," officials stated.
There was no evidence of any harm to civilians in the operation conducted Saturday night and every plane involved made a safe return, the ministry further stated.
The Typhoon fighters were assisted by a Voyager aerial refuelling aircraft.
Daesh - also known as Daesh - imposed jihadist rule over large swathes of both Syria and Iraq until 2019.
"This action shows our UK leadership, and commitment to work closely with our allies, to stamp out any re-emergence of Daesh and their harmful and extremist ideologies in the area," the British Defence Secretary the Defence Secretary stated.
RAF aircraft have carried out overwatch operations over Syrian airspace to "deter any efforts to regroup" of IS after its defeat at the Baghuz confrontation in 2019, the authorities noted.
"I want to thank all the members of our armed forces who took part in this mission for their skill and their courage," the Defence Secretary added. "Including them were numerous British troops deployed over Christmas and New Year. This operation, to eliminate terrorist threats who threaten our security, demonstrates how our armed forces are always on standby, all year round, keeping Britain secure at home and strong abroad."
Last December, the American forces conducted what it described as a "large-scale strike" targeting Daesh sites in the country, following an assault claimed the lives of two American soldiers and a local interpreter in the Palmyra area.
The U.N. estimates Daesh still has between 5,000 and 7,000 fighters in Syria and Iraq.
