More than 40 fighters from the Islamist militant group formerly known as the al-Nusra front have been killed in an airstrike. Meanwhile, so-called IS fighters destroyed a monument in the ancient city of Palmyra.
Image: AFP/Getty Images/F. al-Halabi
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The air attack was reported on Friday by the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which said it could not confirm who had carried it out.
"Warplanes, which may have been Russian or coalition aircraft, struck a Fateh al-Sham camp in Jabal al-Sheikh Suleiman," the Observatory said.
The group is not included in a ceasefire that was brokered by Russia and Turkey although several allied groups are party to it. Since the truce came into effect on December 30, Fateh al-Sham has sustained major losses through airstrikes, with about 100 of its fighters believed killed since the start of the year.
Fateh al-Sham and its associates control almost all of Idlib province in northwestern Syria, as well as swathes of Aleppo province. The group renamed itself from the al-Nusra front last year, after dissolving formal ties with al Qaeda. It is unclear the extent to which the various jihadi groups are cooperating, and the degree to which they are at odds.
The tetrapylon was reconstructed in 1963, and featured only one of the structure's original pillarsImage: Getty Images/AFP/J. Eid
Palmyra monument destroyed
Further south in the country, the "Islamic State" (IS) militant group - which is also excluded from the ceasefire - was reported to have destroyed the famous Tetrapylon structure in the ancient city of Aleppo. The group retook Palmyra in November, some six months after Syrian government forces had driven its fighters out with the help of Russian airstrikes.
The state-run news agency SANA said the militants had destroyed the façade of the Roman ampitheater, along with the cubic-shaped Tetrapylon monument.
In 2014, IS destroyed the Temple of Bel and Temple of Baalshamin, both of which were built about two millennia ago by the Romans. The jihadis have destroyed numerous antiquities across the areas they control, claiming they are monuments to idolatry.
What's left of the ancient city of Palmyra?
Syria's state news agency has reported that "Islamic State" militants have demolished a famous monument and damaged a theater in the ancient city of Palmyra. This is not the first time IS has destroyed ancient relics.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/J. Eid
IS strikes again
What is now left of the ancient ruins at Palmyra - known as the "Pearl of the Desert" - is uncertain after a new strike by IS militants on Thursday. This photo shows the face of statue at a destroyed museum in March 2016. Syrian government forces had recaptured Palmyra that month from jihadists, who view the UNESCO-listed site's ancient ruins as idolatrous.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/J. Eid
Once grandiose, now rubble
This image of Palmyra's Tetrapylon was taken in 2014. If SANA agency reports are correct, this monument is no longer standing. Current images after Thursday's reported strike are still unavailable.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/J. Eid
Amphitheater also suffers a blow
This image shows the Roman amphitheater, which was originally built around 200 A.D., in April 2016. Reports now say the facade has been destroyed by IS extremists. In 2015, jihadists used the site - which once premiered plays - for mass executions. After the city was retaken from IS last year, the Russian government staged a classical music concert here to celebrate the success.
Image: Reuters/O. Sanadiki
Never-ending destruction
Palmyra's National Museum, shown here, also suffered heavy losses under IS rule. Its treasures were looted, some were damaged and others burned.
Image: picture-alliance/Sputnik/M. Voskresenskiy
Before and after
This picture, taken last March, shows the ruins of Palmyra's Temple of Baalshamin - just two columns left standing after IS destruction the year before. The smaller image, held by the photographer, shows the image he took in 2014 - with clearly more in the background behind the columns.
