Historic Statues Removed from the National Museum Located in Damascus
Valuable sculptures and other artefacts have been taken from Syria's National Museum in the capital, officials say.
The burglary was found on the start of the week, when museum workers reportedly found that one of the museum's doors had been broken from the inside.
The half-dozen missing statues were marble creations and traced back to the Roman era, a source informed the Associated Press.
Cultural heritage officials said it had opened an investigation to establish the "circumstances surrounding the theft of a collection of artifacts", and that steps had been taken to improve protection and monitoring systems.
The head of domestic security in Damascus province, Security Chief Atkeh, was referenced by the official media as declaring that authorities were investigating the robbery, which he said had targeted several "ancient sculptures and rare collectibles".
He continued that museum protectors at the museum and other individuals were being interrogated.
The cultural institution, which was created in 1919, contains the most important cultural treasures in the country.
It contains historical records dating back to the ancient era from historical site, where indications of the earliest complete alphabet was uncovered; early centuries CE Greco-Roman sculptures from Palmyra, among the foremost ancient sites of the historical period; and a 3rd Century AD Jewish temple that was constructed at an ancient location.
The institution was compelled to shut in the early 2010s, a year after the start of the internal strife. Most of the holdings was transferred and preserved at secure places to safeguard them.
It partially resumed in recent years and completely reopened in January 2025, one month after insurgents removed the Assad regime.
Each of the six of Syria's Unesco World Heritage sites were affected or partially destroyed during the civil war.
The Islamic State group demolished numerous temples and additional edifices at Palmyra, asserting that they were idolatrous. The cultural organization denounced the demolition as a atrocity.
Countless artefacts were also destroyed or taken from archaeological sites and cultural institutions.
