The Islamic State (IS) Militants have taken over the ancient city of Palmyra in Syria on Wednesday. Following the massive occupation of the neighbourhood of the ancient city, the Syrian pro-government forces had withdrawn after evacuating most of its civilian population, according to state TV, which added that the IS militants were trying to enter the city's historical sites. This is the first time the rebel group has seized a large population center directly from Syrian pro-government forces.
The capture of Palmyra comes as a blow to the Syrian army and allied forces, which have already lost ground in the northwest and south to other insurgent groups in recent weeks. With this advancenment, the rebel group now control more than half of Syria's territory.
The central city, also known as Tadmur, is built alongside the remains of an ancient civilisation whose colonnaded streets, temple and theatre have stood for 2,000 years.
It is home to modern military installations and sits on a desert highway linking the capital Damascus with Syria’s eastern provinces, which are mostly under the control of the militants.
“The news at the moment is very bad. There are small groups that managed to enter the city from certain points,” Syria’s antiquities chief Maamoun Abdulkarim told Reuters earlier on Wednesday.
Abdulkarim said hundreds of statues had been moved to safe locations but called on the Syrian army, opposition and international community to save the site, which UNESCO calls "one of the most important cultural centres of the ancient world".
“The fear is for the museum and the large monuments that cannot be moved,” he said. “This is the entire world’s battle.”
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