World

150 Mines Removed From Ancient Syrian Site

Tuesday, March 29, 2016 7:59 am | < 1 Minute Read
DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) —
This photo released on Sunday March 27, 2016, by the Syrian official news agency SANA, shows a burned banner of the Islamic State group, in the ancient city of Palmyra, central Syria. The amount of destruction found inside the archaeological area in the historic town was similar to what experts have expected but the shock came Monday from inside the local museum where the extremists have caused wide damage demolishing invaluable statues that were torn to pieces. (SANA via AP)
A partially burned banner of the Islamic State terror group, seen in the ancient city of Palmyra, central Syria, Sunday. (SANA via AP)

A Syrian antiquities official says demining experts have so far removed 150 bombs planted by the Islamic State group inside the archaeological site in the ancient town of Palmyra.

Syria’s head of antiquities and museums, Maamoun Abdul-Karim, told The Associated Press on Tuesday that a technical team has returned to Damascus after a two-day effort in Palmyra.

Abdul-Karim says the team photographed the inside of the museum, where many statues were damaged by IS during its 10-month control of Palmyra.

He says the technical team couldn’t reach some remote sites, including the burial places, because there are “hundreds of mines” left.

Syrian troops recaptured the town from IS terrorists on Sunday, after three weeks of intense fighting. Syrian state media also reported that warplanes struck several IS vehicles and targets east of Palmyra.

 

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