Royal Air Force Typhoon jets have operated alongside French aircraft in a combined operation on an underground arms cache in Syria operated by the Islamic State group (IS), according to the UK's MoD.
The facility, pinpointed through intelligence, was believed to be containing munitions and bombs, the statement said, and was located in mountains just to the north of the historic site of Palmyra in Syria's central region.
"Our fighter planes employed Paveway IV guided bombs to hit a series of entry passages providing entry to the depot... initial indications indicate the objective was successfully hit," the ministry announced.
There was no sign of any civilian impact in the operation late on Saturday and all the aircraft made a safe return, the defence officials confirmed.
The Typhoon fighters were assisted by a Voyager aerial refuelling aircraft.
The Islamic State group - also known as Daesh - imposed extremist governance over significant areas in Iraq and Syria before its territorial defeat in 2019.
"This action demonstrates our UK leadership, and determination to work closely with allied nations, to eradicate any revival of the terrorist group and their dangerous and violent ideologies in the region," Britain's Defence Chief John Healey stated.
British military aircraft have conducted surveillance missions over Syrian airspace to "forestall any attempted comeback" of the group after its defeat at the Baghuz confrontation in 2019, the ministry said.
"I must thank every member of the UK armed forces who took part in this strike for their professionalism and their bravery," Healey commented. "Including them were a great many UK service members on duty over Christmas and New Year. This mission, to take out militants who endanger our security, demonstrates how our armed forces are prepared to act, throughout the year, protecting the UK domestically and influential overseas."
Last December, the United States armed forces executed what it described as a "major assault" targeting Daesh sites in the country, after an assault claimed the lives of two US servicemembers and a local interpreter in Palmyra.
The U.N. reports Daesh still has between 5,000 and 7,000 fighters in Syria and Iraq.
