Islamic State militants have entered the ancient ruins of Palmyra after taking control of the Syrian city, monitors say.
Insurgents swept into Palmyra's military air base, prison and intelligence headquarters on Wednesday and were now in the city's ancient sites, Rami Abdulrahman, head of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, said.
Islamic State says it is in complete control of the ancient Syrian city of Palmyra.
The militant group said in a statement on Twitter that pro-government defences had collapsed and fighters had now seized the military airport and prison.
A statement said the the retreating forces "left behind a large number of (their) dead" which it said filled the city square.
Earlier, a monitoring group said IS fighters had entered the ancient ruins of Palmyra amid growing fears the group could destroy historical artefacts.
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