Valuable Statues Stolen from the National Museum Located in Damascus
Valuable sculptures and cultural objects have been taken from Syria's National Museum in the capital, officials say.
The theft was discovered on Monday, when museum workers apparently found that one of the museum's doors had been forced from the inside.
The six taken sculptures were marble creations and originated to the ancient Roman times, an authority told the Associated Press.
Syria's Directorate-General for Antiquities and Museums said it had launched a probe to determine the "details surrounding the loss of a collection of artifacts", and that actions had been implemented to improve safeguarding and observation methods.
The chief of national security in the Damascus region, General Osama Atkeh, was referenced by the state-run Sana news agency as saying that law enforcement were examining the robbery, which he said had targeted several "historical artifacts and rare collectibles".
He added that security personnel at the facility and additional people were being interrogated.
The Damascus Museum, which was established in 1919, contains the significant cultural treasures in the country.
It contains clay cuneiform tablets dating back to the Bronze Age from an ancient city, where evidence of the most ancient complete alphabet was found; 1st and 2nd Century AD ancient art from the ancient city, one of the most important cultural centres of the historical period; and a ancient synagogue that was built at an ancient location.
The institution was compelled to shut in the early 2010s, a year after the outbreak of the devastating civil war. The majority of the collection was transferred and stored at secret locations to safeguard them.
It began limited operations in 2018 and returned to normal in early this year, one month after insurgents overthrew President Bashar al-Assad.
Each of the six of the country's cultural landmarks were damaged or partially destroyed during the conflict.
The militant faction destroyed several ancient buildings and historical sites at the ancient city, claiming that they were un-Islamic. International authorities censured the destruction as a atrocity.
Countless cultural items were also lost or looted from dig sites and cultural institutions.
