ISIS blows up landmark Grand al-Nuri mosque with leaning minaret in Mosul

The iconic al-Nuri mosque in Mosul, Iraq has been blown up by Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL) terrorists, news agencies report citing the Iraqi military.

The historical mosque in the Old City was particularly famous for its leaning minaret. It has now been destroyed, Reuters reported on Wednesday, quoting an Iraqi military statement.

"The Daesh [Arabic term for IS] terror gangs committed another historical crime by blowing up the al-Nuri mosque and its historical al-Hadba minaret," the statement read.

The US Central Command called the destruction of the mosque a "crime against the people of Mosul and Iraq." Centcom said ISIS was solely responsible for the destruction of the landmark, as American forces vowed to bring the terrorists to justice.

"As our Iraqi Security Force partners closed in on the al-Nuri mosque, ISIS destroyed one of Mosul and Iraq's great treasures," said Maj. Gen. Joseph Martin, Commanding General of Combined Joint Forces Land Component Command-Operation Inherent Resolve. "This is a crime against the people of Mosul and all of Iraq, and is an example of why this brutal organization must be annihilated."

IS responded through it's propaganda wing Amaq, and blamed a US airstrike for the mosque’s destruction.