Coordinated UK-French Aerial Assault Hits Islamic State Munitions Store in Syria
Royal Air Force Typhoon jets have operated alongside French aircraft in a joint strike against an underground arms cache in Syrian territory employed by the Daesh militant organization, as stated by the UK Ministry of Defence.
The facility, identified by intelligence, was thought to be housing weapons and explosive materials, the announcement noted, and was positioned in hills just north of the ancient city of Palmyra in central Syria.
"Our fighter planes used Paveway IV guided bombs to strike a series of access tunnels leading to the depot... early reports are that the objective was successfully hit," officials stated.
There was no sign of any harm to civilians in the attack late on Saturday and each participating jet returned to base without incident, the ministry further stated.
The Typhoon FGR4s were assisted by a Voyager refuelling tanker.
IS - referred to as the so-called Islamic State - imposed militant control over large swathes of both Syria and Iraq prior to its 2019 collapse.
"This operation shows the UK's leading role, and resolve to operate in unison with allied nations, to stamp out any resurgence of the terrorist group and their harmful and extremist ideologies in the region," UK Defence Secretary John Healey stated.
UK warplanes have carried out patrols over Syrian airspace to "deter any efforts to regroup" of IS subsequent to its routing at the Baghuz confrontation in 2019, the ministry said.
"I must thank all the members of British forces participating in this mission for their expertise and their courage," the Defence Secretary commented. "Including them were a great many British personnel deployed over Christmas and New Year. This action, to remove dangerous terrorists who pose a risk to our security, shows how British military are ready to step up, all year round, ensuring Britain's security at home and influential overseas."
Last December, the American forces executed what it termed a "large-scale strike" on IS targets in the country, after an attack claimed the lives of two US troops and a local interpreter in Palmyra.
The UN says Daesh still boasts roughly 5-7 thousand militants in Iraq and Syria.
