ISIL blows up part of the Temple of Bel in Syria's Palmyra

Members of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) have blown up part of the historic Temple of Bel in the ancient Syrian city of Palmyra, sources have told Al Jazeera.

ISIL on Sunday detonated more than 30 tons of explosives at the temple, the largest and one of the most significant structures in the UNESCO-listed city.

The U.N. cultural agency UNESCO called the destruction of the temple a war crime.

The British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights and activists on the ground said that the temple had been damaged in the blast.

A Palmyra resident, who goes by the name of Nasser al-Thaer, said IS militants set off a huge blast at 1:45 p.m. Sunday.

"It is total destruction," he said of the scene of the explosion. "The bricks and columns are on the ground."

"It was an explosion the deaf would hear," he added.

The resident said only the outer wall surrounding the temple remains.

The Temple of Bel stands just outside the main area of the city, whose column-lined principal street leads to its gate. The richly decorated central shrine area was well-preserved for a 2,000-year old structure. The temple, consecrated to the Semitic god Bel, was consecrated in 32 A.D.

Its destruction comes a week after the group blew up another of Palmyra's Roman-era temples, Baal Shamin, causing considerable damage. Satellite images captured several days ago confirmed the destruction.

Palmyra, which is around 150 miles northeast of Damsacus, is known as the "Pearl of the Desert" and is regarded as an archaeological oasis.

Earlier this month, ISIL beheaded Khaled Asaad, a respected 82-year-old archaeologist who worked for 50 years as head of antiquities in Palmyra.

Last Friday, UNESCO chief Irina Bokova warned that ISIL fighters in both Iraq and Syria were responsible for "the most brutal, systematic" destruction of ancient heritage since World War II.

ISIL captured Palmyra from government forces in May. 

With wire services