Valuable Statues Removed from the National Museum Located in Damascus
Ancient artifacts and additional items have been stolen from the National Museum of Syria in the capital, sources confirm.
The burglary was found on Monday, when employees reportedly found that one of the museum's doors had been forced from the interior.
The half-dozen taken pieces were marble creations and traced back to the ancient Roman times, a source stated to the news agency.
The nation's antiquities authority said it had initiated an inquiry to identify the "circumstances surrounding the theft of a number of artifacts", and that measures had been taken to strengthen safeguarding and observation methods.
The director of national security in the Damascus region, Brig-Gen Osama Atkeh, was cited by the government press as declaring that law enforcement were examining the theft, which he said had targeted several "historical artifacts and valuable objects".
He noted that guards at the facility and additional people were being interrogated.
The cultural institution, which was founded in the early twentieth century, contains the significant archaeological collection in Syria.
It features ancient inscribed tablets originating to the ancient era from Ugarit, where proof of the earliest linguistic system was found; early centuries CE ancient art from historical site, among the foremost ancient sites of the ancient world; and a ancient religious building that was built at another archaeological site.
The museum was had to cease operations in the early 2010s, one year after the beginning of the devastating civil war. The majority of the artifacts was removed and preserved at undisclosed sites to safeguard them.
It began limited operations in 2018 and returned to normal in early this year, one month after rebel forces deposed Syria's former leader.
Each of the six of Syria's Unesco World Heritage sites were damaged or partly ruined during the civil war.
The IS organization blew up multiple ancient buildings and other structures at the ancient city, claiming that they were against their beliefs. International authorities censured the destruction as a violation.
Numerous artefacts were also lost or taken from historical locations and museums.
