Ancient Statues Taken from Syria's National Museum Located in Damascus
Historic sculptures and other artefacts have been removed from the National Museum of Syria in Damascus, officials say.
The theft was discovered on the start of the week, when employees apparently found that one of the museum's doors had been damaged from the interior.
The six taken pieces were made of marble and dated back to the Roman period, a source informed the media outlet.
Syria's Directorate-General for Antiquities and Museums said it had launched a probe to determine the "details surrounding the disappearance of a collection of exhibits", and that actions had been implemented to improve protection and surveillance.
The director of domestic security in the Damascus region, Security Chief Atkeh, was quoted by the official media as stating that authorities were probing the robbery, which he said had affected several "ancient sculptures and unique items".
He added that security personnel at the institution and other persons were being interviewed.
The National Museum, which was created in the early twentieth century, contains the most important cultural treasures in Syria.
It contains clay cuneiform tablets originating to the ancient era from an ancient city, where proof of the most ancient complete alphabet was uncovered; Greco-Roman period ancient art from Palmyra, among the foremost cultural centres of the ancient world; and a ancient Jewish temple that was constructed at an ancient location.
The museum was forced to close in 2012, twelve months after the start of the internal strife. Most of the artifacts was transferred and stored at secret locations to safeguard them.
It reopened partially in 2018 and completely reopened in early this year, a month after opposition groups removed President Bashar al-Assad.
Every one of nationally recognized sites were harmed or partially destroyed during the internal struggle.
The Islamic State group blew up multiple temples and other structures at the ancient city, stating that they were against their beliefs. Unesco condemned the demolition as a war crime.
Numerous artefacts were also lost or stolen from dig sites and collections.
