Islamic State in Syria destroys parts of Roman theater in Palmyra

BEIRUT — Islamic State militants have destroyed parts of the second-century Roman amphitheater and an iconic monument known as the Tetrapylon in Syria’s historic town of Palmyra, the government and experts said Friday.

Turkey is leading Syrian opposition fighters in an offensive against the Islamic State-held town of al-Bab in the Aleppo province, a push that has been bogged down since mid-November.

Since its military intervention, Turkey has lost 54 soldiers in Syria, most of them in the al-Bab offensive.

On Friday, the state news agency SANA said seven civilians were killed when Islamic State shelled a residential area in the city of Deir el-Zour.

[...] the militant group remains under pressure in northern Syria from Turkey and U.S-backed Kurdish forces, as well as in neighboring Iraq where Iraqi troops backed by the U.S.-led coalition is fighting to retake the city of Mosul from the militants.

Palmyra, a UNESCO world heritage site that once linked Persia, India, China with the Roman empire and the Mediterranean area, has already seen destruction at the hands of the Islamic State.

Satellite imagery obtained by the Boston-based American Schools of Oriental Research, or ASOR, show extensive damage to the Tetrapylon.