Mideast Syria(01 of29)
Open Image ModalThis picture released on Wednesday, May 20, 2015 by the website of Islamic State militants, shows a tank with Islamic State group fighters clashing with Syrian government forces on a road between Homs and Palmyra, Syria. Islamic State militants overran the famed archaeological site at Palmyra early on Thursday, just hours after seizing the central Syrian town, activists and officials said, raising concerns the extremists might destroy some of the priceless ruins as they have done in neighboring Iraq. (The website of Islamic State militants via AP) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Mideast Syria(02 of29)
Open Image ModalThis picture released on Wednesday, May 20, 2015 on the website of Islamic State militants, shows black columns of smoke rising through the air during a battle between Islamic State militants and the Syrian government forces on a road between Homs and Palmyra, Syria. Islamic State militants overran the famed archaeological site at Palmyra early on Thursday, just hours after seizing the central Syrian town, activists and officials said, raising concerns the extremists might destroy some of the priceless ruins as they have done in neighboring Iraq. (The website of Islamic State militants via AP) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Mideast Syria(03 of29)
Open Image ModalIn this picture released on Wednesday, May 20, 2015 by the website of Islamic State militants, an Islamic State fighter aims his weapon during a battle against the Syrian government forces on a road between Homs and Palmyra, Syria. Islamic State militants overran the famed archaeological site at Palmyra early on Thursday, just hours after seizing the central Syrian town, activists and officials said, raising concerns the extremists might destroy some of the priceless ruins as they have done in neighboring Iraq. (The website of Islamic State militants via AP) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Mideast Syria(04 of29)
Open Image ModalIn this picture released on Wednesday, May 20, 2015 by the website of Islamic State militants, an Islamic State fighter fires his weapon during a battle against Syrian government forces on a road between Homs and Palmyra, Syria. Islamic State militants overran the famed archaeological site at Palmyra early on Thursday, just hours after seizing the central Syrian town, activists and officials said, raising concerns the extremists might destroy some of the priceless ruins as they have done in neighboring Iraq. (The website of Islamic State militants via AP) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Mideast Syria Islamic State(05 of29)
Open Image ModalThis shows the general view of the ancient Roman city of Palmyra, northeast of Damascus, Syria. (SANA via AP) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Mideast Syria(06 of29)
Open Image ModalIn this picture released on Wednesday, May 20, 2015 by the website of Islamic State militants, Islamic State fighters take cover during a battle against Syrian government forces on a road between Homs and Palmyra, Syria. Islamic State militants overran the famed archaeological site at Palmyra early on Thursday, just hours after seizing the central Syrian town, activists and officials said, raising concerns the extremists might destroy some of the priceless ruins as they have done in neighboring Iraq. (The website of Islamic State militants via AP) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Mideast Syria Palmyra(07 of29)
Open Image ModalThis shows the general view of the ancient Roman city of Palmyra, northeast of Damascus, Syria. (SANA via AP) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Mideast Syria Palmyra(08 of29)
Open Image ModalThis shows the general view of the ancient Roman city of Palmyra, northeast of Damascus, Syria. (SANA via AP) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Mideast Syria Palmyra(09 of29)
Open Image ModalThis shows the general view of the ancient Roman city of Palmyra, northeast of Damascus, Syria. (SANA via AP) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Mideast Syria Palmyra(10 of29)
Open Image ModalThis shows the general view of the ancient Roman city of Palmyra, northeast of Damascus, Syria. (SANA via AP) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Mideast Syria Islamic State(11 of29)
Open Image ModalThis shows the general view of the ancient Roman city of Palmyra, northeast of Damascus, Syria. (SANA via AP) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Mideast Syria Islamic State(12 of29)
Open Image ModalThis shows the general view of the ancient Roman city of Palmyra, northeast of Damascus, Syria. (SANA via AP) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
SYRIA-CONFLICT-ARCHAEOLOGY-PALMYRA(13 of29)
Open Image ModalSculpture in the ancient Syrian oasis city of Palmyra, 215 kilometres northeast of Damascus, and now displayed at the city's museum. From the 1st to the 2nd century, the art and architecture of Palmyra, standing at the crossroads of several civilizations, married Graeco-Roman techniques with local traditions and Persian influences. AFP PHOTO/JOSEPH EID (Photo credit should read JOSEPH EID/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:JOSEPH EID via Getty Images)
SYRIA-CONFLICT-ARCHAEOLOGY-PALMYRA(14 of29)
Open Image ModalSculpture in the ancient Syrian oasis city of Palmyra, 215 kilometres northeast of Damascus, and now displayed at the city's museum. From the 1st to the 2nd century, the art and architecture of Palmyra, standing at the crossroads of several civilizations, married Graeco-Roman techniques with local traditions and Persian influences. AFP PHOTO/JOSEPH EID (Photo credit should read JOSEPH EID/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:JOSEPH EID via Getty Images)
SYRIA-CONFLICT-ARCHAEOLOGY-PALMYRA(15 of29)
Open Image ModalSculpture in the ancient Syrian oasis city of Palmyra, 215 kilometres northeast of Damascus, and now displayed at the city's museum. From the 1st to the 2nd century, the art and architecture of Palmyra, standing at the crossroads of several civilizations, married Graeco-Roman techniques with local traditions and Persian influences. AFP PHOTO/JOSEPH EID (Photo credit should read JOSEPH EID/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:JOSEPH EID via Getty Images)
SYRIA-CONFLICT-ARCHAEOLOGY-PALMYRA(16 of29)
Open Image ModalSculpture in the ancient Syrian oasis city of Palmyra, 215 kilometres northeast of Damascus, and now displayed at the city's museum. From the 1st to the 2nd century, the art and architecture of Palmyra, standing at the crossroads of several civilizations, married Graeco-Roman techniques with local traditions and Persian influences. AFP PHOTO/JOSEPH EID (Photo credit should read JOSEPH EID/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:JOSEPH EID via Getty Images)
SYRIA-CONFLICT-ARCHAEOLOGY-PALMYRA(17 of29)
Open Image ModalSculpture in the ancient Syrian oasis city of Palmyra, 215 kilometres northeast of Damascus, and now displayed at the city's museum. From the 1st to the 2nd century, the art and architecture of Palmyra, standing at the crossroads of several civilizations, married Graeco-Roman techniques with local traditions and Persian influences. AFP PHOTO/JOSEPH EID (Photo credit should read JOSEPH EID/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:JOSEPH EID via Getty Images)
SYRIA-CONFLICT-ARCHAEOLOGY-PALMYRA(18 of29)
Open Image ModalSculpture in the ancient Syrian oasis city of Palmyra, 215 kilometres northeast of Damascus, and now displayed at the city's museum. From the 1st to the 2nd century, the art and architecture of Palmyra, standing at the crossroads of several civilizations, married Graeco-Roman techniques with local traditions and Persian influences. AFP PHOTO/JOSEPH EID (Photo credit should read JOSEPH EID/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:JOSEPH EID via Getty Images)
SYRIA-CONFLICT-ARCHAEOLOGY-PALMYRA(19 of29)
Open Image ModalSculpture in the ancient Syrian oasis city of Palmyra, 215 kilometres northeast of Damascus, and now displayed at the city's museum. From the 1st to the 2nd century, the art and architecture of Palmyra, standing at the crossroads of several civilizations, married Graeco-Roman techniques with local traditions and Persian influences. AFP PHOTO/JOSEPH EID (Photo credit should read JOSEPH EID/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:JOSEPH EID via Getty Images)
SYRIA-CONFLICT-ARCHAEOLOGY-PALMYRA(20 of29)
Open Image ModalSculpture in the ancient Syrian oasis city of Palmyra, 215 kilometres northeast of Damascus, and now displayed at the city's museum. From the 1st to the 2nd century, the art and architecture of Palmyra, standing at the crossroads of several civilizations, married Graeco-Roman techniques with local traditions and Persian influences. AFP PHOTO/JOSEPH EID (Photo credit should read JOSEPH EID/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:JOSEPH EID via Getty Images)
SYRIA-CONFLICT-ARCHAEOLOGY-PALMYRA(21 of29)
Open Image ModalSculpture in the ancient Syrian oasis city of Palmyra, 215 kilometres northeast of Damascus, and now displayed at the city's museum. From the 1st to the 2nd century, the art and architecture of Palmyra, standing at the crossroads of several civilizations, married Graeco-Roman techniques with local traditions and Persian influences. AFP PHOTO/JOSEPH EID (Photo credit should read JOSEPH EID/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:JOSEPH EID via Getty Images)
Mideast Iraq(22 of29)
Open Image ModalDisplaced Iraqis from Ramadi cross the Bzebiz bridge fleeing fighting in Ramadi, 65 km west of Baghdad, Iraq, Wednesday, May 20, 2015. Thousands of displaced people fleeing violence in nearby Anbar province poured into Baghdad province on Wednesday after central government granted them conditional entry, said a provincial official. (AP Photo/Karim Kadim) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Mideast Iraq Islamic State(23 of29)
Open Image ModalDisplaced Iraqis from Ramadi cross the Bzebiz bridge fleeing fighting in Ramadi, 65 km west of Baghdad, Iraq, Wednesday, May 20, 2015. Thousands of displaced people fleeing violence in nearby Anbar province poured into Baghdad province on Wednesday after central government granted them conditional entry, said a provincial official. (AP Photo/ Karim Kadim) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Mideast Iraq(24 of29)
Open Image ModalAn Iraqi soldier helps an elderly woman on a wheel chair who was displaced from Ramadi due to fighting, on the Bzebiz bridge, in Ramadi, 65 km west of Baghdad, Iraq, Wednesday, May 20, 2015. Thousands of displaced people fleeing violence in nearby Anbar province poured into Baghdad province on Wednesday after central government granted them conditional entry, said a provincial official. (AP Photo/Karim Kadim) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Mideast Iraq(25 of29)
Open Image ModalDisplaced Iraqis from Ramadi cross the Bzebiz bridge fleeing fighting in Ramadi, 65 km west of Baghdad, Iraq, Wednesday, May 20, 2015. Thousands of displaced people fleeing violence in nearby Anbar province poured into Baghdad province on Wednesday after central government granted them conditional entry, said a provincial official. (AP Photo/ Karim Kadim) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Mideast Iraq Islamic State(26 of29)
Open Image ModalDisplaced Iraqis from Ramadi cross the Bzebiz bridge fleeing fighting in Ramadi, 65 km west of Baghdad, Iraq, Wednesday, May 20, 2015. Thousands of displaced people fleeing violence in nearby Anbar province poured into Baghdad province on Wednesday after central government granted them conditional entry, said a provincial official. (AP Photo/ Karim Kadim) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Mideast Iraq Islamic State(27 of29)
Open Image ModalIn this Monday, May 18, 2015 photo, civilians fleeing their hometown of Ramadi, Iraq, drive away a police checkpoint as they drive through Habaniyah town, 80 kilometers (50 miles) west of Baghdad. Iraqi forces and allied Sunni tribesmen repelled an Islamic State attack overnight on a town west of Baghdad, a tribal leader said Tuesday, as the government renewed its commitment to arm anti-militant Sunni tribes following the loss of the key city of Ramadi. (AP Photo) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Mideast Iraq Islamic State(28 of29)
Open Image ModalCivilians flee their hometown of Ramadi, the capital of Iraq's Anbar province, 115 kilometers (70 miles) west of Baghdad, Monday, May 18, 2015. Islamic State militants searched door-to-door for policemen and pro-government fighters and threw bodies in the Euphrates River in a bloody purge Monday after capturing the strategic city of Ramadi, their biggest victory since overrunning much of northern and western Iraq last year. (AP Photo) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Mideast Iraq Islamic State(29 of29)
Open Image ModalIraqi security forces guard displaced Iraqis from Ramadi as they prepare to cross the Bzebiz bridge after spending the night walking towards Baghdad, as they flee their hometown, 65 km west of Baghdad, Iraq, Saturday, May 16, 2015. Islamic State militants seized the center of Ramadi in western Iraq and raised their black flag over the government compound, local officials said. (AP Photo/ Hadi Mizban) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)