Royal Air Force Typhoon FGR4s have joined forces with France's air force in a coordinated attack targeting an subterranean weapons facility in Syria used by the Islamic State group (IS), according to the UK Ministry of Defence.
The site, identified by surveillance, was assessed as storing arms and explosives, the statement said, and was situated in mountainous terrain just above Palmyra in Syria's central region.
"Our fighter planes utilized laser-guided Paveway IV weapons to hit a series of entry passages leading to the depot... early reports suggest the strike was effective," the MoD said.
There was no sign of any civilian casualties in the attack on Saturday evening and each participating jet returned to base without incident, the ministry further stated.
The Typhoon fighters were supported by a Voyager aerial refuelling aircraft.
The Islamic State group - referred to as the so-called Islamic State - enforced extremist governance over large swathes of both Syria and Iraq until 2019.
"This strike shows our UK leadership, and resolve to work closely with allied nations, to eradicate any resurgence of Daesh and their dangerous and violent ideologies in the region," Britain's Defence Chief John Healey stated.
UK warplanes have performed overwatch operations over Syria to "prevent any attempted comeback" of IS following its routing at the Baghuz confrontation in 2019, the ministry said.
"I must thank every member of the UK armed forces participating in this strike for their expertise and their courage," Healey added. "They were part of a great many UK service members deployed over the festive period. This operation, to remove militants who endanger our security, shows how British military are prepared to act, all year round, protecting the UK at home and powerful internationally."
In December, the US military carried out what it termed a "massive strike" on Islamic State objectives in Syria, after an ambush claimed the lives of two US servicemembers and a civilian linguist in the Palmyra area.
The U.N. says Daesh still maintains an estimated 5,000 to 7,000 combatants in Iraq and Syria.
