Joint British-French Airstrike Strikes Daesh Munitions Store in Syria

British Air Force Typhoon FGR4s have joined forces with French aircraft in a combined operation targeting an underground arms cache in Syrian territory used by the Islamic State group (IS), per a report from the UK's MoD.

The location, identified by intelligence, was assessed as housing weapons and explosive materials, the statement said, and was positioned in hills just to the north of the historic site of Palmyra in Syria's central region.

"Our fighter planes employed precision-guided Paveway IV munitions to hit a several entry passages leading to the depot... preliminary assessments suggest the strike was effective," officials stated.

There was no evidence of any civilian casualties in the operation conducted Saturday night and each participating jet returned to base without incident, the MoD added.

The Typhoon FGR4s were backed up by a Voyager aerial refuelling aircraft.

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

"This action demonstrates the UK's leading role, and determination to work closely with allied nations, to stamp out any resurgence of Daesh and their violent and radical beliefs in the region," the British Defence Secretary the Defence Secretary stated.

RAF aircraft have conducted surveillance missions over Syria to "prevent any attempted resurgence" of the group subsequent to its routing at the Baghuz confrontation in the year 2019, the MoD reported.

"I must thank every member of British forces participating in this strike for their skill and their bravery," Healey commented. "Including them were thousands of British personnel on duty over Christmas and New Year. This action, to remove terrorist threats who threaten our safety, highlights how UK forces are prepared to act, continuously, ensuring Britain's security within its borders and influential overseas."

During December, the United States armed forces conducted what it termed a "massive strike" against Islamic State objectives in the country, following an assault claimed the lives of two American soldiers and a civilian linguist in Palmyra.

The United Nations estimates Daesh still has roughly 5-7 thousand fighters in Syria and Iraq.