Islamic State supporters posted photos of explosives at the ancient temple of Baal Shamin. Photo courtesy of Syria's department of antiquities and museums

Islamic State supporters posted photos of explosives at the ancient temple of Baal Shamin. Photo courtesy of Syria's department of antiquities and museums

Islamic State supporters posted photos of militants rigging up explosives at the ancient temple of Baal Shamin. Photo courtesy of Syria's department of antiquities and museums

Islamic State supporters posted photos of the rubble left behind after the destruction of the ancient temple of Baal Shamin. Photo courtesy of Syria's department of antiquities and museums

The ancient temple of Baal Shamin, or "Lord of the Heavens," in Palmyra, Syria, before it was destroyed by Islamic State militants in July 2015. Photo courtesy of Syria's department of antiquities and museums

Islamic State supporters posted photos of the destruction of the ancient temple of Baal Shamin, or "Lord of the Heavens," in Palmyra, Syria. Syria's head of antiquities confirmed the photos were authentic. Photo courtesy of Syria's department of antiquities and museums

PALMYRA, Syria, Aug. 25 (UPI) -- The Syrian government confirmed images released by Islamic State supporters on social media show the destruction of the ancient temple of Baal Shamin in Palmyria.

Syria's head of antiquities announced this weekend the temple, also known as Lord of the Heavens, was destroyed by explosives more than a month ago. Supporters of IS -- also identified as Daesh and by the acronyms ISIS and ISIL -- posted photos of the explosives and and subsequent rubble on Tuesday.


Syria's antiquities and museums department reposted the photos on its website, saying they depict what they purport to show.

"They destroyed an incredibly important architectural structure," director Maamoun Abdulkarim said, as quoted by CNN. "It is the first structure in the Palmyra complex to be destroyed, although they recently destroyed two Islamic shrines nearby.

"They said they would destroy the statues but not the structures themselves inside Palmyra," he said. "They lied."