Valuable Artifacts Taken from the National Museum Located in Damascus
Ancient statues and other artefacts have been removed from Syria's National Museum in the capital, sources confirm.
The theft was noticed on Monday, when staff apparently found that one of the museum's doors had been damaged from the interior.
The six missing sculptures were crafted from marble and traced back to the ancient Roman times, one official told the news agency.
Syria's Directorate-General for Antiquities and Museums said it had launched a probe to determine the "details surrounding the loss of a group of exhibits", and that actions had been implemented to enhance safeguarding and observation methods.
The head of national security in the Damascus region, General Osama Atkeh, was cited by the official media as declaring that authorities were probing the incident, which he said had targeted several "archaeological statues and unique items".
He noted that security personnel at the institution and other persons were being interviewed.
The Damascus Museum, which was established in 1919, houses the significant archaeological collection in the country.
It contains historical records tracing back to the 14th Century BC from Ugarit, where indications of the most ancient linguistic system was uncovered; Greco-Roman period classical statues from historical site, one of the most important cultural centres of the historical period; and a 3rd Century AD Jewish temple that was established at another archaeological site.
The facility was forced to close in the early 2010s, one year after the beginning of the internal strife. A large portion of the holdings was evacuated and kept at undisclosed sites to safeguard them.
It partially resumed in 2018 and completely reopened in the beginning of the year, one month after opposition groups deposed President Bashar al-Assad.
Each of the six of Syria's Unesco World Heritage sites were harmed or significantly impacted during the civil war.
The Islamic State group demolished several temples and additional edifices at the archaeological site, stating that they were un-Islamic. The cultural organization censured the demolition as a atrocity.
Numerous historical objects were also damaged or stolen from historical locations and museums.