The Islamic State fighters have destroyed two ancient Muslim mausoleums in the historic Syrian city of Palmyra, the country’s antiquities director said June 23, AFP reports.
Maamoun Abdulkarim said ISIS jihadists blew up the tombs of Mohammed bin Ali, a descendant of the Prophet Mohammed’s cousin, and Nizar Abu Bahaaeddine, a religious figure from Palmyra, three days ago.
Bin Ali’s burial place is located in a mountainous region four kilometres north of Palmyra, in central Syria.
Abu Bahaaeddine’s tomb, nestled in a leafy oasis about 500 metres (yards) from Palmyra’s ancient ruins, is said to be more than five centuries old.
ISIS has destroyed at least 50 mausoleums dating between 100-200 years old in the regions under its control in north and east Syria, the antiquities director said.
“They consider these Islamic mausoleums to be against their beliefs, and they ban all visits to these sites,” Abulkarim said.