Combined British-French Air Strike Strikes Islamic State Weapons Depot in the Syrian region

Royal Air Force Typhoon fighter aircraft have operated alongside French aircraft in a coordinated attack on an underground arms cache in Syrian territory operated by the Daesh militant organization, per a report from the UK's MoD.

The facility, pinpointed through surveillance, was assessed as containing munitions and bombs, the release indicated, and was positioned in mountains just to the north of the ancient city of Palmyra in the heart of Syria.

"Our fighter planes used Paveway IV guided bombs to target a several entry passages down to the facility... preliminary assessments indicate the strike was effective," the ministry announced.

There was no evidence of any civilian casualties in the strike late on Saturday and each participating jet made a safe return, the MoD added.

The Typhoon FGR4s were supported by a Voyager refuelling tanker.

Daesh - referred to as ISIS - enforced extremist governance over parts of Syria and Iraq until 2019.

"This action underscores British leadership, and determination to work closely with our allies, to eradicate any re-emergence of the terrorist group and their harmful and extremist ideologies in the Middle East," the British Defence Secretary John Healey remarked.

RAF aircraft have performed surveillance missions over Syria to "forestall any efforts to regroup" of IS subsequent to its routing at the Baghuz confrontation in 2019, the MoD reported.

"I extend gratitude to the personnel of our armed forces who took part in this strike for their expertise and their valour," he said. "They were part of thousands of British personnel stationed over Christmas and New Year. This operation, to remove militants who endanger our safety, highlights how our armed forces are always on standby, all year round, protecting the UK at home and strong abroad."

During December, the United States armed forces conducted what it termed a "major assault" against IS targets in Syria, following an assault killed two US troops and a civilian interpreter in Palmyra.

The UN estimates IS still maintains roughly 5-7 thousand combatants in Syria and Iraq.