British and French air strikes on IS weapons depot in Syria

RAF Typhoon fighter jets have carried out a joint strike with French aircraft on underground weapons caches used by the Islamic State group (IS) in Syria, the UK Ministry of Defense said.

The statement said that intelligence confirmed that the facility was believed to store weapons and explosives and was located in a mountainous area north of the ancient site of Palmyra in central Syria.

“Our aircraft targeted multiple pathways into the facility using Paveway IV guided bombs…preliminary indications are that the targets were successfully hit,” the Defense Department said.

The Defense Ministry added that there were no signs of harm to civilians in Saturday night’s attack and that all aircraft returned safely.

The Typhoon FGR4 is powered by Voyager tankers.

IS, also known as Daesh, maintained jihadist rule over parts of Syria and Iraq until 2019.

Defense Secretary John Healey said: “This action demonstrates our British leadership and determination to fight alongside our allies to eliminate the resurgence of ISIS and its dangerous and violent ideology in the Middle East.”

The British Ministry of Defense said RAF aircraft were patrolling the skies over Syria to “prevent an attempted resurgence of the Islamic State group following the failed battle of Baghuz in 2019”.

“I would like to thank all members of the Armed Forces involved in this operation for their professionalism and courage,” Healey said.

“They are among thousands of British personnel deployed over Christmas and New Year. This operation, aimed at neutralizing dangerous terrorists who threaten our way of life, shows how our armed forces are ready all year round to keep the UK safe at home and strong abroad.”

In December, the U.S. military conducted a so-called ” Conducting “large-scale strikes” against “Islamic State” targets in Syriatwo U.S. soldiers and a civilian translator were killed in an ambush in Palmyra.

The United Nations says the Islamic State still has 5,000 to 7,000 fighters in Syria and Iraq.