BEIRUT, Lebanon — The Islamic State group has blown up two historic tombs near Palmyra, in central Syria, according to photographs released online and a Syrian government official, the first major sites in the city that the jihadists claimed to have destroyed.
The seizure of Palmyra by the Islamic State last month had raised concerns about the city’s stunning ruins and other artifacts, given the group’s treatment of antiquities. With other victories in Syria and Iraq, the jihadists shattered statues and blew up tombs, which under their interpretation of Islamic teachings are forms of idolatry.
Islamic State fighters have looted other sites for antiquities to sell.
Maamoun Abdulkarim, the head of Syria’s Antiquities and Museum’s Department, was quoted by The Associated Press on Wednesday as saying that the jihadists had destroyed the tomb of Mohammad Bin Ali, a Shiite saint, and a site marking the grave of Nizar Abu Bahaa Eddine, a Sufi scholar who lived in the city 500 years ago.
The Islamic State, also known as ISIS or ISIL, also reported the destruction, releasing photographs online that showed fighters carrying explosives. The photos gave views of the sites before, during and after the detonation.
The fate of the rest of Palmyra’s antiquities remains unclear.