The ancient city of Palmyra, a UNESCO World Heritage site in Syria’s central Homs province, stands as a haunting reminder of the country’s devastating civil war.
Once hailed as one of Syria’s top tourist destinations, the city’s Greco-Roman temples and structures from the A.D. first and second centuries have suffered catastrophic damage over the past decade. In 2015, the Daesh terrorist group destroyed key monuments, including the Temple of Bel, the Temple of Baalshamin, the Arch of Triumph and several royal tombs. The notorious group also executed renowned archaeologist Khaled al-Asaad on site.
The destruction didn’t end there. As regime forces loyal to the now-deposed Bashar Assad sought to reclaim Palmyra, airstrikes and artillery shelling pushed the site’s cultural legacy to the brink of obliteration.
Despite the devastation, domestic tourists have recently returned to Palmyra for the first time in 14 years, wandering through ruins with a mixture of grief and hope that the ancient city might one day regain its lost grandeur under a new government.
Former UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova previously condemned the destruction, calling it a war crime and "a major loss for the Syrian people and humanity as a whole."
Zaher Selim, a member of Palmyra’s Civil Committee and a local figure in the city’s reconstruction efforts, told Anadolu Agency (AA) that the community was forced to flee due to Daesh’s occupation and regime attacks.
“During Daesh’s nearly nine-month-long control, Palmyra’s heritage was devastated,” Selim said. “Later, strikes by regime and Russian forces deepened the destruction. After Daesh’s withdrawal, regime forces looted the site.”
Selim added that the pillaging extended beyond ancient ruins. “Homes, shops, markets and museum artifacts were stolen. Underground tombs were plundered, and unauthorized excavations were rampant. In its second occupation, Daesh used explosives to demolish city landmarks like the Arch of Triumph, the Roman Theatre, and the Bel and Baalshamin temples,” he said.
Obstacles remain for residents hoping to return, including widespread infrastructure collapse and abandoned military outposts. “Electricity, water and sewage systems are critically inadequate. Of the 84 electrical transformers, only four are operational,” Selim noted.
He said that while some progress has been made in education, health care remains severely lacking. “The shortage of medical equipment and doctors makes even basic health services difficult to access,” he said.
