ISIS Appears to Destroy 2 Palmyra Tombs, Flaunting Wreckage in Photos

The Islamic State group has blown up two historic tombs near Palmyra, in central Syria, according to photographs released online and a Syrian government official, the first major sites in the city that the jihadists claimed to have destroyed.

The seizure of Palmyra by the Islamic State last month had raised concerns about the city’s stunning ruins and other artifacts, given the group’s treatment of antiquities. With other victories in Syria and Iraq, the jihadists shattered statues and blew up tombs, which under their interpretation of Islamic teachings are forms of idolatry.

Islamic State fighters have looted other sites for antiquities to sell.