ISIS wipes out another symbol of Syria's cultural heritage, Temple of Bel

ISIS has destroyed another historical artefact-the ancient temple of Bel in Syria's Palmyra city, a group monitoring the conflict said on Sunday.

The militants targeted the Temple of Bel, a Roman-era structure in the central desert city, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

It is the second temple ISIS has targeted in Palmyra this month. The militants detonated explosives in the ancient Baal Shamin temple on Aug. 25, an act that cultural agency UNESCO has called a war crime aimed at wiping out a symbol of Syria's diverse cultural heritage.

The extent of the damage at the Temple of Bel was not known, the Observatory said, citing its contacts on the ground.

Activists on social media also reported the destruction at the temple, one of Palmyra's most important structures.

ISIS seized Palmyra in May from government forces in a sudden offensive and is tightly controlling communications in the city, according to activists.

The militants, which have proclaimed a caliphate in territory they hold across Syria and Iraq, have regularly demolished monuments they consider sacrilegious as well as carrying out mass killings.

This month the group beheaded the 82-year-old Syrian archaeologist who had looked after Palmyra's ruins for four decades, and hung his body in public, according to Syria's antiquities chief.