Ancient Artifacts Taken from Syria's National Museum Located in Damascus
Historic artifacts and additional items have been taken from the National Museum of Syria in the capital, sources confirm.
The burglary was found on Monday, when employees apparently found that one of the museum's doors had been broken from the interior.
The six taken sculptures were made of marble and traced back to the Roman era, an authority stated to the media outlet.
Syria's Directorate-General for Antiquities and Museums said it had launched a probe to identify the "events surrounding the loss of a group of artifacts", and that measures had been taken to improve safeguarding and surveillance.
The head of internal security in the Damascus region, Security Chief Atkeh, was quoted by the official media as saying that law enforcement were probing the robbery, which he said had focused on several "historical artifacts and rare collectibles".
He noted that security personnel at the institution and other individuals were being questioned.
The National Museum, which was founded in the early twentieth century, contains the most important cultural treasures in Syria.
It contains historical records originating to the ancient era from an ancient city, where indications of the oldest known writing system was discovered; early centuries CE Greco-Roman sculptures from the ancient city, a significant historical locations of the classical era; and a ancient religious building that was constructed at an ancient location.
The museum was forced to close in the early 2010s, a year after the outbreak of the devastating civil war. Most of the holdings was removed and preserved at secret locations to safeguard them.
It partially resumed in 2018 and resumed full operations in January 2025, a month after insurgents deposed Syria's former leader.
Every one of nationally recognized sites were affected or partly ruined during the conflict.
The IS organization blew up multiple temples and additional edifices at Palmyra, stating that they were idolatrous. Unesco condemned the damage as a war crime.
Many historical objects were also lost or looted from dig sites and cultural institutions.
