An underground facility operated by the terrorist group north of Palmyra, Syria, was hit by strike plane in a mixed raid on Jan. 3, 2026.
The UK’s Ministry of Defence (MoD) introduced the operation on the night of Jan. 3, amid the worldwide information deal with the U.S. operation in Venezuela, shortly after the mission had been accomplished.
Secretary of State for Defence John Healey mentioned “This motion reveals our UK management, and dedication to face shoulder to shoulder with our allies, to stamp out any resurgence of Daesh and their harmful and violent ideologies within the Center East.”
This motion reveals our UK management – and dedication to face shoulder to shoulder with our allies – to stamp out any resurgence of Daesh and their harmful and violent ideologies within the Center East.
— John Healey (@JohnHealey_MP) January 3, 2026
The Royal Air Pressure contingent of the mission used Storm FGR4s, which deployed Paveway IV precision guided bombs in opposition to the underground advanced. They have been supported by Voyager refueling plane, all flying from RAF Akrotiri inside British territory on the island of Cyprus.
In contrast to some current missions, it’s notable that the strike didn’t seem to make their ingress via Syrian airspace however took the historic routing through Israeli and Jordanian airspace. The brand new flight path has turn into extra ceaselessly used for the reason that change in management in Syria, which now apparently permits coalition plane to function over its airspace with governmental permission.
Plane virtually sure to have been concerned within the strike could possibly be tracked making their means into Syrian airspace round 1730 UTC earlier than returning after 1900 UTC. Routine Operation Shader missions – the operational codename given to the UK’s navy intervention in opposition to Daesh, often known as ISIS or ISIL – can frequently be tracked in an identical means, so this may haven’t impacted operational safety to any diploma greater than normal. In actual fact, had they been seen or heard making making ready a mission however with out ADS-B or Mode S enabled it might tip adversaries off to a extra uncommon strike being deliberate.
The French Air Pressure participated with Rafale jets working from a base within the Center East. Video footage posted by official social media accounts depict plane carrying AASM Hammer strike weapons, which have been presumably the kind employed within the mission. French refueling plane have been doubtless additionally concerned. In contrast to the RAF sorties, French operations over the area are not often in a position to be tracked utilizing flight monitoring functions.
📍Syrie | Dans le cadre d’OIR (Operation Inherent Resolve) la 🇫🇷 et son allié 🇬🇧 ont réalisé des frappes contre des positions du groupe terroriste de l’État islamique.⁰➡️ Empêcher la résurgence de Daesh: un enjeu majeur pour la sécurité de la région.⁰➡️ La lutte contre le… pic.twitter.com/bllq9vSHA7
— Armée française – Opérations militaires (@EtatMajorFR) January 4, 2026
In its announcement, the UK MoD said that cautious intelligence evaluation had recognized the goal, which is suspected to have been used to retailer weapons and explosive supplies. It was situated distant from any civilian populations, and no danger to civilian life in the course of the strike was recognized. The Paveway IV bombs, that are based mostly on 500 lb Mark 82 basic function bombs, have been focused at entry tunnels resulting in the ability. A extra detailed battle harm evaluation (BDA) was but to be accomplished on the time of the assertion, however preliminary assessments – doubtless captured through the LITENING concentrating on pods carried by Storm FGR4s – indicated that the mission had been profitable.
Our plane used Paveway IV guided bombs to focus on numerous entry tunnels right down to the ability; while detailed evaluation is now underway, preliminary indications are that the goal was engaged efficiently. pic.twitter.com/IPBOv3rCeR
— Ministry of Defence 🇬🇧 (@DefenceHQ) January 3, 2026
The ability was situated in a mountain vary north of the traditional metropolis of Palmyra, a UNESCO World Heritage Website which grew to become a hotly contested battleground in the course of the Syrian Civil Battle. Alongside destruction suffered throughout preventing and aerial bombardments, Daesh intentionally demolished a few of the metropolis’s historical options and infamously beheaded the positioning’s Head of Antiquities in a staged public execution after he refused to surrender particulars and areas of a few of the metropolis’s most valuable treasures.
Geolocations utilizing open supply knowledge by analyst Samir (@obretix) point out that the ability was round 40 kilometres north of Palmyra, nicely clear from the danger of inflicting any harm to historic materials across the web site.
Coalition airstrike in Syria geolocated ~40km north of Palmyra pic.twitter.com/v2rrR25nVp
— Samir (@obretix) January 4, 2026
Although Daesh has not held vital quantities of territory in Syria for the reason that Battle of Baghuz Fawqani in 2019, pockets of the group’s affect nonetheless exist in small, centered areas. In September 2024, america introduced that the navy intervention in opposition to Daesh would draw to a detailed over the next 12 months and transition to a brand new part, which was echoed by a UK assertion. Regardless of nicely over 12 months having handed, operations in opposition to Daesh present little signal of slowing down in comparison with previous to the announcement, and each Operation Inherent Resolve and Operation Shader proceed to be lively.
The official social media presence for the Mixed Joint Activity Pressure collaborating in Operation Inherent Resolve shared information of the mission, and mentioned: “Though Daesh not controls territory, it continues to function via remaining cells, notably in distant desert areas. This operation demonstrates the continued unity, functionality, and resolve of Operation Inherent Resolve (OIR) companions, together with France and the UK, to disrupt ISIS’s skill to regroup, rearm, and conduct assaults.”
