Sunday Times 2
IS seizes Iraqi govt compound, kills dozens in Syria
View(s):BEIRUT, May 16 (AFP) -Islamic State extremists made key gains Friday, seizing a government compound in the strategic Iraqi city of Ramadi
Sunni people react as they flee the violence in the city of Ramadi. Islamic State militants raised their black flag over the local government headquarters in the Iraqi city and claimed victory (REUTERS)
hours after allegedly massacring dozens of civilians as they closed in on Syria’s ancient metropolis of Palmyra.
Women and children were among 23 people executed in cold blood outside Palmyra, monitoring groups said, as fears grew that advancing IS troops would destroy the ancient city renowned as a world heritage site.
Following the latest reported IS atrocity in Syria, jihadists raised their black flag over Ramadi’s government headquarters after launching a wide offensive using suicide car bombs that sent civilians fleeing the western city, edging closer to what would be their biggest victory in Iraq this year.
IS “now occupies the government centre in Ramadi and has also raised its flag over the police HQ for Anbar”, a police major told AFP on condition of anonymity.
The IS gains in Iraq came as rights groups reported the group had massacred 23 people as it advanced on Palmyra, and it now held positions within one kilometre (less than a mile) of the UNESCO world heritage site.
Rami Abdel Rahman, head of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, told AFP IS fighters had “executed by gunfire 23 civilians, including nine children, in the village of Amiriyeh.