It ’s one of the many bitter ironies of the moment that the Islamic State - an outfit driven by a puritanical zeal and a nihilistic penchant for violence - has taken root in one of the most archaeologically rich parts of the world . The stretches of northern Iraq and Syria where the group has seized territory are home to many layers of history and the ruins of dozens of ancient civilizations , including some of the world ’s first urban societies . The regime of Syrian President Bashar Assad has used the Islamic State ’s razing of the past and ransacking artifactexistence.damagedestroy.destroy of museums as part of its propaganda . After regime forces recaptured Palmyra , a UNESCO World Heritage site , with Russian support this year , the government held a concert in the site ’s Roman - era amphitheater . Russian President Vladimir Putin beamed in via video conference and declared the liberation of Palmyra from the Islamic State a “ sign of hope in the battle against terrorism . ”

It ’s one of the many bitter ironies of the moment that the Islamic State - an outfit driven by a puritanical zeal and a nihilistic penchant for violence - has taken root in one of the most archaeologically rich parts of the world . The stretches of northern Iraq and Syria where the group has seized territory are home to many layers of history and the ruins of dozens of ancient civilizations , including some of the world ’s first urban societies . The regime of Syrian President Bashar Assad has used the Islamic State ’s razing of the past and ransacking artifactexistence.damagedestroy.na of museums as part of its propaganda . After regime forces recaptured Palmyra , a UNESCO World Heritage site , with Russian support this year , the government held a concert in the site ’s Roman - era amphitheater . Russian President Vladimir Putin beamed in via video conference and declared the liberation of Palmyra from the Islamic State a “ sign of hope in the battle against terrorism . ”