By Erika Solomon in Erbil Militants of Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isis ) have blown up the ancient temple of Baalshamin, one of the archeological treasures of Syria's ancient city, Palmyra, according to Syrian officials and opposition activists. Baalshamin was nearly 2,000 years old and one of the best preserved temples of Palmyra, according to Unesco, which condemned the attack. Reports of the temple's destruction come only a week after activists and Syrian officials said Isis had beheaded Khaled al-Assaad , a Syrian archeologist who devoted his life to studying and preserving Palmyra."The systematic destruction of cultural symbols embodying Syrian cultural diversity reveals the true intent of such attacks, which is to deprive the Syrian people of its knowledge, its identity and history," said Irina Bokova, Unesco's director-general. "One week after the killing of Professor Khaled al-Assaad, the archaeologist who had looked after Palmyra's ruins for four decades, this destruction is a new war crime and an immense loss for the Syrian people and for humanity." An official at the UN agency said the organisation had received confirmation of the temple's destruction from Syria's head of antiquities, but could provide no further details or documentation. Syria is embroiled in a civil war that has devolved beyond the struggle to topple President Bashar al-Assad to a multi-faceted conflict. Amid the chaos, Isis has seized almost half the country's territory, though much of that is desert. Ancient Palmyra, known for its iconic avenue of Roman columns was an oasis on a trade route linking eastern civilisations with the Roman empire and served as a cultural crossroad of the ancient world. Its ruins lie to the south-west of the modern city of Palmyra, which Isis seized from Assad forces during a string of advances in the desert region of Syria's Homs province in May, in addition to the provincial capital of neighbouring Iraq's Anbar province, Ramadi. No photos have surfaced of the destroyed temple and there are conflicting reports as to when the attack took place. Unesco cited reports saying Baalshamin was blown up on Sunday. But the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a pro-opposition monitoring group, said the temple was blown up a month ago, citing reports coming from residents who recently fled. Isis, which is trying to impose its own, hardline version of Islam, usually publicises such destruction, saying it is ridding areas under its control of idol worship - though experts say many of the archeological sites it has destroyed are Islamic. Several months ago Isis released a video of militants smashing Assyrian artefacts in north-western Iraq. " is killing people and destroying sites, but cannot silence history and will ultimately fail to erase this great culture from the memory of the world," Ms Bokova said in her statement. "Unesco stands by all Syrian people in their efforts to safeguard their heritage, a heritage for all humanity." (http://ift.tt/1POiZpU)

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Isis destruction of Palmyra's Baalshamin temple confirmed

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