THE Islamic State group has killed three of its captives in Syria by tying them to Roman-era columns in Palmyra before blowing the structures up with explosives.
It was the latest gruesome method of killing by the militant group, which has become known for horrific beheadings of its prisoners.
A Palmyra activist who goes by the name Nasser al-Thaer said that the killings of the three took place at the Palmyra archaeological site, located a few miles away from the city.
Mr Al-Thaer and the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which relies on a network of activists on the ground, said the three were civilians but that their identities remain unknown.
Earlier this week, the group posted images on social media which purported to show its members driving a tank over a captured government soldier, after he allegedly drove over IS militants.
Islamic State is known to have tanks, mostly captured in battle from Syrian troops or in the territory it holds in neighbouring Iraq.
It has also destroyed many of ancient Palmyra's relics, including the Temple of Bel and the Arch of Triumph.
