Historic Statues Stolen from the National Museum in Damascus
Historic statues and additional items have been removed from Syria's National Museum in Damascus, sources confirm.
The robbery was discovered on the start of the week, when staff allegedly found that a doorway had been broken from the interior.
The multiple missing sculptures were made of marble and dated back to the ancient Roman times, an authority told the news agency.
Syria's Directorate-General for Antiquities and Museums said it had launched a probe to establish the "details surrounding the theft of a number of exhibits", and that measures had been taken to enhance security and observation methods.
The chief of national security in the Damascus region, Brig-Gen Osama Atkeh, was referenced by the state-run Sana news agency as saying that authorities were investigating the robbery, which he said had focused on several "ancient sculptures and unique items".
He added that guards at the facility and other individuals were being interrogated.
The Damascus Museum, which was established in the early twentieth century, houses the primary archaeological collection in Syria.
It features clay cuneiform tablets originating to the ancient era from historical site, where indications of the most ancient complete alphabet was uncovered; Greco-Roman period Greco-Roman sculptures from historical site, one of the most important cultural centres of the historical period; and a 3rd Century AD synagogue that was constructed at an ancient location.
The facility was had to cease operations in 2012, twelve months after the outbreak of the internal strife. Most of the artifacts was evacuated and preserved at undisclosed sites to protect them.
It reopened partially in 2018 and resumed full operations in January 2025, four weeks after opposition groups removed the Assad regime.
Every one of nationally recognized sites were harmed or partly ruined during the conflict.
The IS organization blew up multiple religious structures and additional edifices at the archaeological site, claiming that they were un-Islamic. Unesco censured the damage as a atrocity.
Many cultural items were also lost or stolen from archaeological sites and cultural institutions.
