Barbaric destruction of Palmyra heritage flayed

(MENAFN- Arab News) BEIRUT/DAMASCUS: Daesh published photos on Tuesday purporting to show the destruction of a Roman-era temple in the ancient Syrian city of Palmyra an act the UN cultural agency UNESCO has called a war crime.
Syria's antiquities chief Maamoun Abdulkarim told Reuters the images did appear to show the destruction of the ancient Balshamin temple and correlated with descriptions given by residents of the explosion detonated there on Sunday.
Five photos were distributed on social media showing explosives being carried inside being planted around the walls of the temple a large blast and then rubble.
The blast photo shows a huge cloud of grey smoke soaring above the temple with ancient columns in the foreground. Reuters could not independently verify the pictures. Activists say Daesh is tightly controlling communications in the central desert city.
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said he was appalled by Daesh's crime. "These barbaric acts of terror join a long list of crimes committed over the past four years in Syria against its civilian population and heritage" Ban said.