Palmyra

Jihadists from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) entered the northern city limits of ancient Palmyra May 20, seizing a state security building after intense fighting, a monitor said.  

Satellite imagery indicate that 290 cultural heritage sites in Syria, whose history stretches back to the dawn of civilization, have been damaged by its ongoing civil war, the United Nations' training and research arm (UNITAR) said on Dec. 23.