RAF Typhoon fighter aircraft have operated alongside French warplanes in a joint strike on an subterranean weapons facility in Syria used by the Islamic State group (IS), according to the British defence ministry.
The facility, located using intelligence, was believed to be storing arms and explosives, the statement said, and was located in mountainous terrain just above Palmyra in the heart of Syria.
"Our aircraft utilized precision-guided Paveway IV munitions to hit a number of approach shafts leading to the depot... preliminary assessments indicate the objective was successfully hit," the MoD said.
There was no sign of any civilian impact in the strike on Saturday evening and all the aircraft returned to base without incident, the MoD added.
The British jets were backed up by a Voyager tanker plane.
Daesh - referred to as Daesh - enforced extremist governance over significant areas in Iraq and Syria before its territorial defeat in 2019.
"This strike underscores British leadership, and determination to work closely with our allies, to eradicate any revival of the terrorist group and their dangerous and violent ideologies in the Middle East," the British Defence Secretary John Healey stated.
UK warplanes have carried out surveillance missions over Syria to "deter any attempted comeback" of the group following its military defeat at the Baghuz confrontation in 2019, the authorities noted.
"I must thank all the members of our armed forces participating in this operation for their expertise and their valour," he said. "Including them were numerous British personnel stationed over the festive period. This operation, to eliminate militants who pose a risk to our way of life, demonstrates how British military are ready to step up, all year round, ensuring Britain's security domestically and powerful internationally."
During December, the American forces executed what it termed a "major assault" targeting Daesh sites in the country, following an assault claimed the lives of two US servicemembers and a civilian linguist in Palmyra.
The United Nations reports IS still maintains an estimated 5,000 to 7,000 combatants in Iraq and Syria.
