The Islamic State terror group has released a video showing how they razed an ancient Iraq city.
Militants attacked the Assyrian city of Nimrud last month, but shocking footage of their determined efforts to turn it into rubble emerged yesterday.
The undated video shows the men using power tools, sledgehammers and even a bulldozer to break up the ancient friezes, sending them crashing to the ground.
Oil barrels filled with explosives were then lined up in three areas of the site.
The blast sent huge plumes of dust into the sky, completing obliterating the city which was founded in 13th century BC.
Isis has previously attacked a number of other Assyrian sites and destroyed countless manuscripts, books and other artefacts they deemed un-Islamic.
One of the men in video tells viewers: “God has honoured us in the Islamic State to remove all of these idols and statues worshipped instead of Allah in the past days.”
Nimrud is about 20 miles south of the Mosul in northern Iraq, which is now under Isis control.
It is considered one of the most important archaeological sites in the country.
Excavations began in the city in 1845, with many treasures removed and placed in museums around the world over the years. However, the site was also looted and damaged during the invasion of Iraq in 2003.
When the attack was first reported in March, a Mosul tribal leader said Isis had “looted the valuables in Nimrud and then proceeded to level the site to the ground. There used to be statues and walls as well as a castle that Islamic State has destroyed completely.”
A statement released by UNESCO at the time said: “In a new crime in their series of reckless offences they assaulted the ancient city of Nimrud and bulldozed it with heavy machinery, appropriating archaeological attractions dated back 13th century BC.”
The video is only the latest proof of Isis militants destroying invaluable heritage sites.
Last week, a similar video showing them destroying walls and statues in UNESCO’s World Heritage city of Hatra.