Bashar Assad said IS was created "under the supervision" of the United States and sponsored by Turkey, so Syria could not expect a genuine fight against IS from those countries.

Axar.az reports that, the recapture of the ancient Syrian city of Palmyra by IS jihadists was supervised by the United States, Syria's President Bashar Assad told the Japanese TBS broadcaster.

"They [IS jihadists] could retake Palmyra under the supervision of the Americans, under the surveillance of the American drones; they came through the desert and they occupied Palmyra," Assad said, according to the interview transcript published.

The Syrian president added that the IS had been created "under the supervision" of the United States and sponsored by Turkey, so Syria could not expect a genuine fight against IS from those countries.

Earlier in the day, reports emerged that IS militants destroyed the world-known tetrapylon and parts of the Roman theater in the ancient city of Palmyra.

In December 2016, IS, outlawed in Russia and many other countries, recaptured the ancient city of Palmyra from Syrian government forces. According to various sources, the number of terrorists that took part in the storming of the city reached 5,000 including hundreds of suicide bombers and dozens of armored vehicles.