Four Tornados from RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus took part in the first British air offensive in Syria, a spokesman from the Ministry of Defense said.
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On Wednesday, the British parliament authorized airstrikes against the Islamic State, and within hours RAF Tornado jets were dropping high precision Paveway bombs on ISIS-controlled oil fields in eastern Syria.
Earlier, David Cameron insisted conducting air strikes against IS in Syria would help to bring a political settlement to the country.
MPs voted by 397 to 223 last night in favour of extending British action to quash IS, also known as Isis, Isil and Daesh, from Iraq into its Syrian strongholds – a majority of 174.
The Ministry of Defence told CNN that there were four jets that took off from the airbase with an aim of hitting the IS-managed oil field in Eastern Syria.
“That strikes a very real blow at the oil and the revenue on which the Daesh terrorists depend”, defence secretary Michael Fallon told the BBC. “Since November a year ago our security services have foiled no fewer that seven different plots against our people”, Cameron said.
“We are going to need to be patient and persistent because this is going to take time”. President Francois Hollande cited specific threats against French interests stemming from IS in Syria.
Mr Cameron said that he welcomed the strong support across Parliament with MPs from six different parties backing “this necessary action”. Although several of the oil fields have already been hit by the U.S.-led coalition, Britain chose a target with low risk of collateral damage for its first strike in Syria. The RAF has been launching strikes against IS targets in Syria from Cyprus since 2014.
Momentum to join the strikes grew after last month’s terror attack on Paris that claimed 130 lives.
The opposition Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn said the airstrikes were a “reckless and half-baked intervention”. They joined warplanes from the US, Russia, France, Turkey, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates in Syria’s crowded airspace.
He said reaching an agreement was “absolutely crucial but we can’t wait for that to happen before we start taking action against Daesh”.
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Meanwhile, Germany’s parliament voted to send military support to the US-led coalition fighting IS in Syria.
