Syrian forces reach Palmyra, driving back IS militants

Syrian government forces are reported to have reached the outskirts of the ancient city of Palmyra, after driving back Islamic State militants.

The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that troops were now only 2km south of the Unesco World Heritage-listed ruins.

IS militants seized the site and the adjoining modern town in May. They subsequently destroyed two 2,000-year-old temples, an arch and funerary towers, drawing global outrage.

IS, which has also demolished several world-renowned pre-Islamic sites in neighbouring Iraq, believes that such structures are idolatrous.

The Syrian Observatory, which relies on a network of sources on the ground in Syria, told the AFP news agency that government forces were on Wednesday only 2km from Palmyra's southern outskirts and 5km from its western edge.

The governor of Homs province, Talal Barazi, confirmed the advance and said troops were now stationed on several hills overlooking the Greco-Roman ruins.

"There is continuous progress by the army from all directions," he was quoted as saying by the Associated Press.

The UN cultural agency, Unesco, has condemned the destruction as a war crime.