Islamic state destroys The Lion of Al-Lat - discovered at a temple of a pre-Islamic goddess

Islamic State group militants destroyed a famous statue of a lion outside the main museum in the ancient Syrian city of Palmyra

The statue, known as the Lion of Al-Lat, was an irreplacable piece and was apparently destroyed. "IS members destroyed the Lion of al-Lat, which is a unique piece that is three metres (10 feet) tall and weighs 15 tonnes," Abdelkarim told AFP. "It's the most serious crime they have committed against Palmyra's heritage," he said. The limestone statue was discovered in 1977 by a Polish archeological mission at the temple of Al-Lat, a pre-Islamic Arabian goddess, and dated back to the 1st century BC.

the statue had been covered with a metal plate and sandbags to protect it from fighting "but we never imagined that IS would come to the town to destroy it." IS captured Palmyra, a renowned UNESCO World Heritage site, from government forces, prompting international concerns about the fate of the city's antiquities.

Abdelkarim said the busts "appear to be eight statues stolen from the tombs in Palmyra." "The destruction is worse than the theft because they cannot be recovered." IS's harsh version of Islam considers statues and grave markers to be idolatry, and therefore against their religion, and the group have destroyed antiquities and heritage sites in territory under its control in both Syria and Iraq.

Allāt or al-Lāt (Arabic: اللات‎) was a Pre-Islamic Arabian goddess who was one of the three chief goddesses of Mecca along with Manāt and al-‘Uzzá.

The shrine and temple dedicated to al-Lat in Taif was demolished on the orders of Muhammad, during the Expedition of Abu Sufyan ibn Harb, in the same year as the Battle of Tabuk(which occurred in October 630 AD).The destruction of the idol was a demand by Muhammad before he would allow any reconciliation to take place with the tribes of Taif, who were under his siege.