Palmyra, northeast of Damascus, contains the ruins of a 2,000-year-old city that was one of the most important cultural centers of the ancient world. Syrian government forces were shelling Islamic State positions in an attempt to repel the advance, pro-government Ikhbareya television said.
Islamic State began an offensive to take Palmyra, the largest city in the Syrian desert, and surrounding villages to its east on May 13. Controlling the site may enable the jihadist group to link territory under its sway in Deir Ezzour to Syria’s border with Iraq, according to Rami Abderrahman, head of the observatory.
“Very few government forces exist between Palmyra and the Iraq-Syrian border, and this is a large geographic area,” he said by phone.
Dated to the 1st to the 2nd centuries, Palmyra flourished as a caravan station on a trade route linking Persia, India and China with the Roman Empire. Its art and architecture fused Graeco-Roman techniques with local traditions and Persian styles. Among its most celebrated ruins is a grand, colonnaded street that links major monuments including the Temple of Ba’al, a deity worshiped by ancient Middle Eastern communities.
The Syrian government moved artifacts from Palmyra’s museum to Damascus 10 days ago, local opposition groups said. Still, the prospect of the city’s fall has raised fears for its future. Islamic State has destroyed or damaged important historical monuments in territory it controls in Syria and Iraq, including the World Heritage Sites of Nimrud, Nineveh and Hatra.
