Beirut: Syria’s air force carried out at least 15 strikes in and around the central city of Palmyra early on Monday, targeting buildings captured by Daesh, a group monitoring the war said.
Fighters from the terrorist group overran the ancient city, the site of some of the world’s best preserved Roman ruins, last week. They have killed at least 217 people execution-style in the area since May 16 including children, the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.
This was in addition to at least 300 soldiers killed by Daesh in fighting leading up to the city’s capture, according to the Observatory’s toll.
It said the hardline group had detained around 600 soldiers, pro-government fighters and those accused of being loyalists in and around the city, also a key military gain as it stands on a crossroads to the cities of Damascus and Homs.
The air force carried out raids on targets including the military intelligence building and the city hospital, said Observatory founder Rami Abdul Rahman, who gathers information from a network of sources on the ground.
Daesh supporters have posted videos online which they say show fighters going from room to room in government buildings in Palmyra, also known as Tadmur, searching for troops and pulling down pictures of President Bashar Al Assad and his father.
They have also posted pictures claiming to show Daesh’s flag raised over the ancient citadel in Palmyra, which UN cultural agency UNESCO describes as the site of a historical crossroads between the Roman Empire, India, China and ancient Persia.
Daesh seized the city of 50,000 people on Wednesday, days after also capturing the city of Ramadi in neighbouring Iraq.
