Royal Air Force Typhoon fighter aircraft have joined forces with France's air force in a joint strike against an subterranean weapons facility in Syrian territory used by the IS group, per a report from the UK's MoD.
The facility, located using surveillance, was assessed as containing munitions and bombs, the statement said, and was situated in mountainous terrain just to the north of Palmyra in central Syria.
"Our fighter planes employed precision-guided Paveway IV munitions to target a several approach shafts providing entry to the facility... preliminary assessments indicate the objective was successfully hit," officials stated.
There was no indication of any civilian impact in the strike late on Saturday and each participating jet made a safe return, the defence officials confirmed.
The British jets were assisted by a Voyager tanker plane.
IS - alternatively referred to as the so-called Islamic State - established militant control over large swathes of Iraq and Syria before its territorial defeat in 2019.
"This action shows British leadership, and resolve to operate in unison with our allies, to eliminate any resurgence of the terrorist group and their violent and radical beliefs in the Middle East," Britain's Defence Chief John Healey stated.
RAF aircraft have conducted overwatch operations over Syrian airspace to "deter any attempted resurgence" of IS after its military defeat at the Baghuz confrontation in 2019, the ministry said.
"I extend gratitude to all the members of our armed forces involved in this strike for their expertise and their bravery," the Defence Secretary said. "Including them were thousands of British troops deployed over the festive period. This action, to remove dangerous terrorists who threaten our safety, shows how our armed forces are always on standby, throughout the year, ensuring Britain's security at home and influential overseas."
In December, the American forces executed what it called a "large-scale strike" on IS targets in Syria, after an ambush resulted in the deaths of two US servicemembers and a civilian linguist in the Palmyra area.
The UN says Islamic State still boasts between 5,000 and 7,000 combatants in Iraq and Syria.
