Joint British-French Airstrike Strikes IS Weapons Depot in Syria

Royal Air Force Typhoon jets have operated alongside French aircraft in a coordinated attack targeting an underground arms cache in Syrian territory operated by the Daesh militant organization, per a report from the UK Ministry of Defence.

The facility, identified by reconnaissance, was thought to be housing weapons and explosive materials, the announcement noted, and was situated in mountainous terrain just above the ancient city of Palmyra in Syria's central region.

"Our aircraft used Paveway IV guided bombs to target a several entry passages leading to the site... early reports are that the target was engaged successfully," the ministry announced.

There was no indication of any civilian impact in the strike on Saturday evening and all the aircraft returned to base without incident, the defence officials confirmed.

The Typhoon fighters were backed up by a Voyager aerial refuelling aircraft.

The Islamic State group - referred to as ISIS - enforced extremist governance over large swathes of both Syria and Iraq before its territorial defeat in 2019.

"This operation demonstrates British leadership, and commitment to work closely with allied nations, to stamp out any re-emergence of IS and their harmful and extremist ideologies in the region," UK Defence Secretary the Defence Secretary said.

RAF aircraft have performed surveillance missions over Syrian airspace to "forestall any efforts to regroup" of IS following its military defeat at the battle of Baghuz in 2019, the ministry said.

"I must thank all the members of our armed forces involved in this strike for their skill and their bravery," Healey commented. "Including them were thousands of British personnel stationed over the holidays. This operation, to remove dangerous terrorists who threaten our security, highlights how our armed forces are always on standby, all year round, keeping Britain secure at home and strong abroad."

During December, the United States armed forces carried out what it called a "large-scale strike" on Islamic State objectives in the country, after an assault claimed the lives of two American soldiers and a civilian linguist in the Palmyra area.

The United Nations reports Islamic State still maintains between 5,000 and 7,000 fighters in both countries.