British Air Force Typhoon FGR4s have operated alongside French aircraft in a combined operation against an underground arms cache in Syrian territory operated by the Islamic State group (IS), as stated by the UK's MoD.
The site, pinpointed through surveillance, was thought to be housing weapons and explosive materials, the announcement noted, and was located in hills just above the ancient city of Palmyra in central Syria.
"Our fighter planes utilized laser-guided Paveway IV weapons to strike a number of approach shafts providing entry to the site... preliminary assessments indicate the strike was effective," the MoD said.
There was no evidence of any civilian impact in the operation conducted Saturday night and all the aircraft made a safe return, the MoD added.
The British jets were supported by a Voyager tanker plane.
IS - referred to as the so-called Islamic State - enforced militant control over large swathes of both Syria and Iraq before its territorial defeat in 2019.
"This action shows our UK leadership, and commitment to work closely with our partners, to stamp out any resurgence of IS and their dangerous and violent ideologies in the region," Britain's Defence Chief John Healey said.
UK warplanes have conducted patrols over Syria to "forestall any attempted comeback" of the group following its military defeat at the battle of Baghuz in the year 2019, the authorities noted.
"I extend gratitude to every member of the UK armed forces involved in this operation for their professionalism and their courage," Healey said. "They were part of a great many British personnel on duty over the holidays. This operation, to eliminate terrorist threats who threaten our security, shows how British military are ready to step up, continuously, ensuring Britain's security at home and powerful internationally."
In December, the American forces executed what it described as a "major assault" on IS targets in Syria, after an ambush claimed the lives of two US servicemembers and a civilian interpreter in Palmyra.
The United Nations estimates Islamic State still has roughly 5-7 thousand fighters in Iraq and Syria.
