British Air Force Typhoon fighter aircraft have conducted a mission with French aircraft in a coordinated attack on an hidden munitions depot in Syrian territory operated by the Daesh militant organization, per a report from the UK Ministry of Defence.
The site, pinpointed through intelligence, was thought to be containing munitions and bombs, the release indicated, and was located in mountainous terrain just above the historic site of Palmyra in Syria's central region.
"Our fighter planes utilized Paveway IV guided bombs to strike a several entry passages down to the depot... preliminary assessments are that the target was engaged successfully," officials stated.
There was no indication of any civilian impact in the operation on Saturday evening and each participating jet returned to base without incident, the ministry further stated.
The British jets were assisted by a Voyager tanker plane.
Daesh - alternatively referred to as ISIS - enforced extremist governance over significant areas in Syria and Iraq prior to its 2019 collapse.
"This operation demonstrates British leadership, and resolve to operate in unison with allied nations, to eliminate any re-emergence of IS and their harmful and extremist ideologies in the Middle East," Britain's Defence Chief the minister stated.
British military aircraft have performed overwatch operations over Syrian airspace to "forestall any attempted comeback" of IS following its routing at the climactic battle in Baghuz in 2019, the MoD reported.
"I want to thank all the members of British forces who took part in this strike for their skill and their valour," the Defence Secretary commented. "Including them were a great many British troops on duty over Christmas and New Year. This operation, to take out terrorist threats who pose a risk to our way of life, shows how UK forces are ready to step up, throughout the year, ensuring Britain's security domestically and powerful internationally."
During December, the US military executed what it described as a "large-scale strike" targeting IS targets in the country, after an ambush claimed the lives of two US servicemembers and a civilian linguist in the Palmyra area.
The U.N. reports IS still has an estimated 5,000 to 7,000 fighters in Syria and Iraq.
