Ancient Statues Taken from Syria's National Museum in Damascus
Valuable sculptures and cultural objects have been taken from the National Museum of Syria in Damascus, sources confirm.
The burglary was discovered on Monday, when employees reportedly found that one of the museum's doors had been forced from the interior.
The multiple taken statues were marble creations and dated back to the Roman period, an authority told the media outlet.
Cultural heritage officials said it had opened an investigation to establish the "circumstances surrounding the loss of a collection of exhibits", and that actions had been enacted to strengthen protection and monitoring systems.
The chief of domestic security in the capital area, Brig-Gen Osama Atkeh, was quoted by the government press as declaring that authorities were investigating the theft, which he said had focused on several "historical artifacts and rare collectibles".
He continued that museum protectors at the facility and other individuals were being interrogated.
The Damascus Museum, which was founded in the early twentieth century, houses the most important cultural treasures in Syria.
It contains ancient inscribed tablets tracing back to the ancient era from historical site, where evidence of the earliest linguistic system was discovered; Greco-Roman period ancient art from the ancient city, a significant cultural centres of the ancient world; and a ancient religious building that was established at an ancient location.
The museum was compelled to shut in 2012, a year after the outbreak of the destructive conflict. The majority of the artifacts was transferred and preserved at undisclosed sites to safeguard them.
It began limited operations in 2018 and completely reopened in January 2025, one month after opposition groups removed President Bashar al-Assad.
Every one of nationally recognized sites were harmed or significantly impacted during the internal struggle.
The IS organization destroyed numerous religious structures and additional edifices at the ancient city, claiming that they were un-Islamic. Unesco denounced the demolition as a violation.
Numerous artefacts were also damaged or taken from dig sites and museums.
