2d LD: IS militants retreat from Syria's Palmyra

The Islamic State (IS) militants withdrew from areas they entered in the city of Palmyra in the eastern countryside of the central province of Homs, Mamoun Abdulkarim, Syria's director-general of antiquities and museums, told Xinhua on Sunday.

"The latest news that we have received this morning and now is that the IS terrorists have withdrawn from the city of Palmyra and they have been dislodged from that area and the situation there is relieving," Abdulkarim told Xinhua.

He added that the group didn't enter the ancient part of the city, adding that the terror group attempted to storm the ancient citadel of Palmyra in vain.

"They definitely hadn't entered the ancient part of the city. They have attempted to storm the ancient citadel from its north and they also attempted to enter the area from the eastern side but they didn't get close to the areas where the museums and the ancient tombs are located," he said.

Meanwhile, the Syria official stressed that all ancient parts of that millennia-old oasis city were not affected by the recent IS attack.

"I can say that the ancient parts of Palmyra were not touched because the clashes were taking place at the outskirts," he noted.

The IS unleashed attack on the city last Thursday in a bid to take control of that strategic area. Opposition groups said the terror group entered parts of the northern district of Palmyra."

Sources told Xinhua that the Syrian troops sent reinforcement to protect the ancient part of the city.

On Thursday, the UNESCO expressed deep concerns over fighting near Palmyra that is endangering the nearby population and posing an imminent threat to the iconic ruins, calling out to all parties "to make every effort to prevent its destruction."

"The site has already suffered four years of conflict, it suffered from looting and represents an irreplaceable treasure for the Syrian people and for the world," UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova said.

"I appeal to all parties to protect Palmyra and make every effort to prevent its destruction," he said.

UNESCO said Palmyra is considered one of the most important cultural sites in the Middle East.

Palmyra contains the monumental ruins of a great city that was one of the most important cultural centers of the ancient world.

From the 1st to the 2nd century, the art and architecture of Palmyra, standing at the crossroads of several civilizations, married Graeco-Roman techniques with local traditions and Persian influences, according to the UNESCO.

Syria has many prehistoric, Greek, Byzantine and Islamic heritages. Before the crisis, Syria had attracted many multinational archaeological missions coming for searching new clues of historical facts on the development of civilizations.

The UNESCO has listed six Syrian sites on the World Heritage List, including the old cities of Damascus and Aleppo, al-Madhiq castle, the Krak des Chevaliers, the ancient city of Bosra and Palmyra and the ancient villages in northern Syria. Endit