An official told Reuters that the ministry had received reports from its employees in the northern city of Mosul, which is under the control of the radical Islamist group, that the site at Hatra had been demolished on Saturday.

The official said it was difficult to confirm the reports and the ministry had not received any pictures showing the extent of the damage.

But a resident in the area told Reuters he heard a powerful explosion early on Saturday and said that other people nearby had reported that ISIS militants had destroyed some of the larger buildings in Hatra and were bulldozing other parts.

Hatra lies about 110 km (70 miles) south of Mosul, the largest city under ISIS control. A week ago the militants released a video showing them smashing statues and carvings in the city’s museum, home to priceless Assyrian and Hellenistic artefacts dating back 3,000 years.

On Thursday they attacked the remains of the Assyrian city of Nimrud, south of Mosul, with bulldozers. The United Nations cultural agency UNESCO condemned the actions as “cultural cleansing” and said they amounted to war crimes.

Hatra dates back 2,000 years to the Seleucid empire which controlled a large part of the ancient world conquered by Alexander the Great. It is famous for its striking pillared temple at the centre of a sprawling archaeological sit