Damascus - Islamic State group jihadists seized Syria's Palmyra on Thursday, as UNESCO warned that the destruction of the ancient city would be "an enormous loss to humanity".
The capture of Palmyra, a 2,000-year-old metropolis, reportedly leaves more than half of Syria under IS control and comes days after the group also expanded its control in Iraq.
But US President Barack Obama played down the developments, saying he didn't think the US was "losing" to IS.
Palmyra "is the birthplace of human civilisation. It belongs to the whole of humanity and I think everyone today should be worried about what is happening," UNESCO chief Irina Bokova said on Thursday.
IS fighters had spread out through Palmyra, including at the archaeological site in the city's southwest, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.
The jihadists executed 17 people, including civilians, they accused of "working with the regime," it said.
Syrian state media said loyalist troops withdrew after "a large number of IS terrorists entered the city".
Online, IS proclaimed its capture of the entire city, strategically located at the crossroads of key highways leading west to Damascus and Homs, and east to Iraq.
The jihadists, notorious for demolishing archaeological treasures since declaring a "caliphate" last year straddling Iraq and Syria, fought their way into Palmyra on foot.
AFP
