
Extraordinary new drone footage has revealed the extent of the devastation wrecked by the jihadi group ISIS after they captured Palmyra last summer.

ISIS destroyed a number of key archaeological features on the site, including the Temple of Baal, leaving archaeologists with a difficult task of re-constructing the ancient landmarks.

Despite the damage, Syria's antiquities chief believes the ancient site of Palmyra could be fully restored to its former glory in five years after Syrian government forces re-captured the ISIS-held site.

'We were expecting the worst. But the landscape, in general, is in good shape. 'We could have completely lost Palmyra. The joy I feel is indescribable.'' Maamoun Abdulkarim told AFP.

'If we have UNESCO's approval, we will need five years to restore the structures damaged or destroyed by IS,' he said.

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During its rule of Palmyra, IS killed scores of people and destroyed invaluable artifacts dating back more than 1,800 years, along with a famed Roman triumphal archway

IS had used Palmyra's ancient theatre as a venue for public executions and also murdered the city's 82-year-old former antiquities chief

Russian forces, which intervened in support of longtime ally Assad last September, were heavily involved in the Palmyra offensive despite a major drawdown last week

The damage within the hugely significant historical landscape was predicted to be massive following brutal combat exchanges between the extremist group and the regime

Ruins of the Monumental Arch destroyed by ISIS militants in Palmyra, a UNESCO world heritage site

Syrian's government forces celebrated ousting ISIS from Palmyra by enjoying a kick-about amongst the ancient city's 4,000 year-old ruins.

The regime troops relaxed with a quick game of football after finally ridding the UNESCO World Heritage site of the extremist faction following three weeks of fighting.

Still armed with rifles and dressed in combat gear, the soldiers let loose in an area which until only yesterday had been a stronghold for the Islamic State.

They were joined by pro-government militiamen and Russian fighters who strolled among the ruins in awe after seizing the city on Sunday.

ISIS terror chiefs sparked a global outcry when they started destroying Palmyra's treasured monuments, which they consider idolatrous, after taking the city in May 2015.

A substantial number of statues, temples and other structures were destroyed by militants of the so called Islamic State (ISIS) after they took Palmyra under control in 2015

Syrian's government forces celebrated ousting ISIS from Palmyra by enjoying a kick-about amongst the ancient city's 4,000 year-old ruins

The regime troops relaxed with a quick game of football after finally ridding the UNESCO World Heritage site of the extremist faction following three weeks of fighting

Still armed with rifles and dressed in combat gear, the soldiers let loose in an area which until only yesterday had been a stronghold for the Islamic State

They were joined by pro-government militiamen and Russian fighters who strolled among the ruins in awe after seizing the city on Sunday

The damage within the hugely significant historical landscape was predicted to be massive following brutal combat exchanges between the extremist group and the regime.

The terror network had also released videos of them blowing up ancient ruins as well as carrying out mass executions in front of a baying crowd in the amphitheatre.

Despite the chaos and ISIS's no-nonsense approach to destroying pre-Islamic structures, the amphitheatre is one of the standout features of the site which remains in tact.

The jihadi group did obliterate the notorious Tadmur prison, using dozens of barrels of explosives to blow up the jail, which was once the Assad regime's key torture facilities.

'We have the qualified staff, the knowledge and the research. With UNESCO's approval, we can start the work in a year's time. Eighty percent of the ruins are in good shape.'

A Syrian military official says bomb squads are now working on removing mines and bombs planted by the Islamic State group in the historic town.

He confirmed that explosives have been planted across much of Palmyra, including residential areas as well as the historic quarter that is home to some of the middle east's most valuable archaeological relics.

Syrian troops and pro-government militiamen captured Palmyra Sunday under the cover of Russian airstrikes ending a 10-month control of the town by the extremists.

Syrian troops and pro-government militiamen captured Palmyra Sunday under the cover of Russian airstrikes ending a 10-month control of the town by the extremists

Residential neighbourhoods in the adjacent modern town, where 70,000 people lived before the war, were deserted and damage there was widespread, the correspondent said

A Syrian military official says bomb squads are now working on removing mines and bombs planted by the Islamic State group in the historic town

Syrian troops celebrate while riding home from the ancient city following their weekend's success

During its rule of Palmyra, IS killed scores of people and destroyed invaluable artifacts dating back more than 1,800 years, along with a famed Roman triumphal archway.

Some monuments, including the iconic Temple of Bel, are said to be in pieces almost a year after jihadists seized the site, but much of the ancient city was intact.

Residential neighbourhoods in the adjacent modern town, where 70,000 people lived before the war, were deserted and damage there was widespread, the correspondent said.

Historian of the ancient world Maurice Sartre said: 'One mustn't forget that only around 15 to 20 per cent of Palmyra had actually been excavated, and so there was an enormous amount yet to discover.

Forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad walk with their weapons in Palmyra city after recapturing it

Syrian troops pass by buildings left almost completely destroyed by weeks of gunfire and airstrikes

The badly damaged Lion of Al-Lat statue at the entrance of the museum in Palmyra. It is not yet known whether this relic can be restored

ISIS fighters took pleasure in destroying ancient artefacts and ruins believing them to be blasphemous

The once popular visitor museum is left strewn with toppled objects after being ransacked by the terror group

'All the tombs we hadn't excavated and have now been totally pillaged are lost to science forever.'

IS had used Palmyra's ancient theatre as a venue for public executions and also murdered the city's 82-year-old former antiquities chief.

The Syrian army said the city would now serve as a base to 'broaden operations' against IS, including in its stronghold of Raqqa and Deir Ezzor further east.

At least 400 IS fighters were killed in the battle for the city, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

On the government side, 188 troops and militiamen were killed.

'That's the heaviest losses that IS has sustained in a single battle since its creation' in 2013, the director of the Britain-based monitoring group, Rami Abdel Rahman, told AFP.

The Great Colonnade in Palmyra is one of the many ancient relics affected by the Islamic State's temporary residence

The Temple of Bel is said to be in pieces almost a year after jihadists seized the site, but much of the ancient city is intact

Government army soldiers climb their way to the top of Fakhr al-Din al-Maani Citadel, a UNESCO world heritage site, to place a flag

Russian forces, which intervened in support of longtime ally Assad last September, were heavily involved in the Palmyra offensive despite a major drawdown last week.

Russian warplanes carried out 40 combat sorties around Palmyra in the last 24 hours, striking 117 'terrorist targets' and killing 80 IS fighters, Moscow's defence ministry said on Sunday.

Putin telephoned Assad to congratulate the Syrian leader, adding that 'successes such as the liberation of Palmyra would be impossible without Russia's support,' a Kremlin spokesman said.

Assad said the victory was 'fresh proof of the efficiency of the Syrian army and its allies in fighting terrorism'.

IS and its jihadist rival, the Al-Qaeda-affiliated Al-Nusra Front, are not party to a ceasefire in force across Syria since February 27.

The truce has brought relative quiet to many areas across Syria, where more than 270,000 have been killed and millions had fled their homes in the last five years.