UK, French air forces bomb suspected IS site in Syria

British and French air forces conducted a joint operation on Saturday evening to bomb a suspected underground arms storage facility previously used by the Islamic State (IS) group in Syria, the British Defense Ministry has said.

Britain's Royal Air Force aircraft identified an underground facility in the mountains north of the ancient site of Palmyra, said a statement issued by the ministry on Saturday night, adding that the facility was most likely used to store "weapons and explosives."

British air forces used Paveway IV guided bombs to target a number of access tunnels down to the facility, and initial indications are that the target was "engaged successfully," said the statement.

The area around the facility is "devoid of any civilian habitation," and there is "no indication of any risk" posed to civilians by the strike, it added.

The defense secretary, John Healey, said the UK was determined to "stand shoulder to shoulder with our allies" to "stamp out any resurgence" of IS.

Western aircraft have been conducting patrols to stop a resurgence of the Islamist militant group that ruled parts of Syria until 2019.

Two weeks ago, the U.S. military carried out a "massive strike" against the IS group in Syria. That followed the IS ambush in the city of Palmyra on December 13 in which two U.S. soldiers and a U.S. civilian interpreter were killed. The operation employed more than 100 precision munitions, and more than 70 targets at multiple locations across central Syria were struck.

(With input from Xinhua)