Ancient Artifacts Taken from Syria's National Museum in Damascus
Ancient statues and additional items have been stolen from the National Museum of Syria in Damascus, authorities report.
The burglary was discovered on the start of the week, when staff apparently found that one of the museum's doors had been broken from the interior.
The half-dozen missing statues were marble creations and dated back to the ancient Roman times, an authority informed the news agency.
Cultural heritage officials said it had launched a probe to identify the "circumstances surrounding the theft of a collection of items", and that measures had been taken to improve security and observation methods.
The head of domestic security in the Damascus region, Security Chief Atkeh, was quoted by the government press as declaring that law enforcement were probing the robbery, which he said had targeted several "archaeological statues and rare collectibles".
He continued that museum protectors at the facility and other persons were being interviewed.
The National Museum, which was created in the early twentieth century, holds the significant cultural treasures in the country.
It features historical records tracing back to the 14th Century BC from an ancient city, where indications of the earliest complete alphabet was uncovered; Greco-Roman period Greco-Roman sculptures from Palmyra, among the foremost historical locations of the ancient world; and a ancient religious building that was established at Dura Europos.
The facility was compelled to shut in the early 2010s, twelve months after the start of the internal strife. A large portion of the collection was evacuated and preserved at secret locations to protect them.
It began limited operations in 2018 and returned to normal in January 2025, four weeks after insurgents removed Syria's former leader.
Every one of Syria's Unesco World Heritage sites were affected or partly ruined during the internal struggle.
The IS organization destroyed multiple religious structures and historical sites at the archaeological site, asserting that they were un-Islamic. International authorities censured the demolition as a violation.
Countless artefacts were also destroyed or taken from archaeological sites and cultural institutions.
