In Photos: Islamic State had apparently used Mosul archaeological site for training

Mosul (IraqiNews.com) Photos circulated by social networks users have showed training equipment left by the Islamic State at an archaeological site in western Mosul which Iraqi security and allied militias recaptured recently.

Iraqi security troops and the Popular Mobilization Units said three days ago they had recaptured the ancient region of al-Hadar (Hatra) from the Islamic State in a brief offensive.

Photos taken after the liberation of the area show what appears to be hurdles, knotted ropes and swinging bars in the middle of ancient columns.

Iraqi government forces, backed by a U.S.-led coalition and paramilitary troops, recaptured eastern Mosul in January and are nearing the recapture of the western region as part of offensives launched mid February.

Since its emergence in 2014 to declare an “Islamic Caliphate”, the Islamic State demolished several priceless archaeological sites in Mosul, drawing international condemnation. The extremist group’s doctrine deems antiquities as symbols of infidelity.