Joint Anglo-French Air Strike Targets IS Munitions Store in Syria

RAF Typhoon jets have conducted a mission with French aircraft in a joint strike targeting an hidden munitions depot in Syria employed by the Islamic State group (IS), per a report from the UK's MoD.

The location, pinpointed through reconnaissance, was assessed as containing munitions and bombs, the release indicated, and was situated in hills just north of the historic site of Palmyra in the heart of Syria.

"Our aircraft used laser-guided Paveway IV weapons to hit a several access tunnels down to the depot... initial indications are that the objective was successfully hit," the ministry announced.

There was no sign of any harm to civilians in the strike conducted Saturday night and all the aircraft made a safe return, the ministry further stated.

The Typhoon fighters were supported by a Voyager tanker plane.

The Islamic State group - referred to as Daesh - imposed militant control over parts of both Syria and Iraq prior to its 2019 collapse.

"This strike underscores British leadership, and commitment to stand shoulder to shoulder with allied nations, to eradicate any re-emergence of Daesh and their harmful and extremist ideologies in the Middle East," Britain's Defence Chief John Healey remarked.

RAF aircraft have carried out surveillance missions over Syrian airspace to "forestall any attempted resurgence" of the group after its routing at the battle of Baghuz in 2019, the MoD reported.

"I extend gratitude to every member of our armed forces involved in this strike for their professionalism and their courage," he commented. "Including them were numerous British troops on duty over Christmas and New Year. This action, to take out terrorist threats who pose a risk to our way of life, highlights how our armed forces are prepared to act, throughout the year, keeping Britain secure within its borders and influential overseas."

Last December, the United States armed forces carried out what it termed a "large-scale strike" on Daesh sites in Syria, following an attack killed two American soldiers and a local interpreter in Palmyra.

The United Nations reports IS still boasts an estimated 5,000 to 7,000 fighters in Iraq and Syria.