Reports: Syrian army closes in on Palmyra
The Syrian army closed in on the Islamic State-controlled city of Palmyra on Thursday, according to media reports.
Speaking from the nearby city of Homs, Gov. Talal Barazi told The Associated Press that the army identified three directions from which to storm Palmyra and was clearing all roads leading to it of mines and explosives.
“We might witness in the next 48 hours an overwhelming victory in Palmyra. The army is advancing in a precise and organized way to protect what is possible of monuments and archaeological sites.” he said.
Since seizing the historic city in May, the Islamic State, also known as ISIS or ISIL, has destroyed a number of ancient monuments at the Greco-Roman site. The group controls vast swaths of Syria and neighboring Iraq.
The militants have destroyed the tower tombs of Palmyra, which date from 100 A.D., including the four-story Tower of Elahbel, the most prominent example of Palmyra's funerary monuments. The extremists also beheaded archaeologist Khaled al-Asaad, a caretaker at the Palmyra site and destroyed the 2,000-year-old Temple of Bel.