ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq - The United Kingdom said Saturday it conducted airstrikes alongside France targeting a suspected underground weapon storage site of the Islamic State (ISIS) in central Syria’s Palmyra.

“Careful intelligence analysis identified an underground facility, in the mountains some miles north of the ancient site of Palmyra. This facility had been occupied by Daesh [ISIS], most likely to store weapons and explosives,” the UK defence ministry said in a statement.

The joint operation targeted a number of tunnels leading to the facility, according to the statement, noting that initial indications suggest “the target was engaged successfully.”

The area around the targeted location is reportedly “devoid of any civilian habitation,” the statement added. 

The ministry reaffirmed that the British air forces continue to patrol Syria to prevent a potential ISIS resurgence in the country. The UK and France are both part of the US-led global coalition against ISIS.

The coalition conducted its first field tour in the Syrian desert, a high-risk area housing suspected ISIS cells, in mid December, weeks after the new Syrian government joined the international anti-ISIS body. 

At least two US army soldiers and a civilian interpreter were killed and three were wounded during an ISIS attack on the coalition and Syrian security forces near Palmyra during the December tour.

In retaliation, the US military launched Operation Hawkeye Strike, striking more than 70 ISIS targets across central Syria using fighter jets, attack helicopters, and artillery, according to a statement from the US Central Command (CENTCOM).

Despite being territorially defeated in 2019, ISIS still poses a security threat across Syria, with the extremist group mostly resorting to hit-and-run attacks. The group has also tried to take advantage of the security vacuum in the country to regroup, especially in the vast desert areas.