Franco-British airstrike targets IS weapons depot in Syria

Royal Air Force Typhoon jets have joined French planes in a joint strike against an underground weapons cache in Syria used by the Islamic State (IS) group, the British Ministry of Defense has announced.

The facility, identified by intelligence, was believed to store weapons and explosives, the statement said, and was in the mountains just north of Palmyra, an ancient site in central Syria.

“Our aircraft used Paveway IV guided bombs to target a number of access tunnels to the facility… Initial indications are that the target was successfully engaged,” the Defense Department said.

There were no signs of harm to civilians in the strike Saturday evening and all planes returned safely, the Defense Ministry added.

The Typhoon FGR4s were supported by a Voyager tanker.

ISIS – also known as Daesh – imposed jihadist rule on parts of Syria and Iraq until 2019.

“This action demonstrates our British leadership and determination to stand with our allies to stem any resurgence of Daesh and their dangerous and violent ideologies in the Middle East,” said British Defense Secretary John Healey.

RAF aircraft carried out patrols over Syria to “prevent any attempted resurgence” of IS following its defeat at the Battle of Baghouz in 2019, the ministry said.

“I would like to thank all members of our armed forces involved in this operation for their professionalism and courage,” Healey said.

“They were among thousands of British troops deployed over Christmas and New Year. This operation, aimed at eliminating the dangerous terrorists who threaten our way of life, shows how our armed forces are prepared to step up their efforts, all year round, to keep Britain safe at home and strong abroad.”

In December, the US military conducted what it called a “Massive strike” against IS targets in Syriaafter an ambush, two American soldiers and a civilian interpreter were killed in Palmyra.

According to the United Nations, ISIS still has between 5,000 and 7,000 fighters in Syria and Iraq.