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| Palmyra's Temple of Bel 'destroyed' | Palmyra's Temple of Bel 'destroyed' |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| A satellite image confirms that a temple in the ancient Syrian city of Palmyra has been destroyed, the United Nations says. | A satellite image confirms that a temple in the ancient Syrian city of Palmyra has been destroyed, the United Nations says. |
| There had been earlier reports of an explosion at the Temple of Bel in Palmyra, which is held by militants from Islamic State (IS). | There had been earlier reports of an explosion at the Temple of Bel in Palmyra, which is held by militants from Islamic State (IS). |
| Syria's antiquities chief had earlier said the basic structure of the 2,000-year-old site was intact. | |
| But UN satellite analysts say the image shows almost nothing remains. | But UN satellite analysts say the image shows almost nothing remains. |
| "We can confirm destruction of the main building of the Temple of Bel as well as a row of columns in its immediate vicinity," a statement from the UN's training and research agency, Unitar, said. | |
| Maamoun Abdulkarim, the head of the Syrian Department of Antiquities and Museums, had said the Temple of Bel suffered a large explosion, but that he believed most of the site remained intact. | |
| Witnesses had struggled, however, to get close to the site to confirm the extent of the damage. | |
| Last week, it was confirmed that another site at Palmyra, the Baalshamin temple, had been blown up. | |
| Unitar released satellite images on Monday showing the extent of the damage to Baalshamin, proving that parts were heavily damaged or completely destroyed. | |
| IS militants seized control of Palmyra in May, sparking fears for the World Heritage site. | |
| The world-famous Greco-Roman ruins are in the desert north-east of the Syrian capital, Damascus. | |
| The Temple of Bel is dedicated to the Palmyrene gods and was one of the best-preserved parts of the ancient city. | |
| IS has previously targeted historical sites in areas under its control in Iraq and Syria, regarding their ancient temples and sculptures as heretical. |