Ancient Statues Removed from the National Museum Located in Damascus
Historic artifacts and cultural objects have been stolen from Syria's National Museum in the capital, officials say.
The theft was noticed on the start of the week, when employees apparently found that one of the museum's doors had been forced from the interior.
The six missing pieces were crafted from marble and traced back to the ancient Roman times, a source stated to the media outlet.
Cultural heritage officials said it had opened an investigation to identify the "events surrounding the theft of a number of artifacts", and that steps had been enacted to enhance safeguarding and observation methods.
The chief of internal security in the Damascus region, Security Chief Atkeh, was referenced by the official media as saying that law enforcement were probing the incident, which he said had affected several "archaeological statues and rare collectibles".
He added that museum protectors at the facility and additional people were being interrogated.
The cultural institution, which was created in the early twentieth century, contains the most important cultural treasures in the country.
It includes ancient inscribed tablets tracing back to the ancient era from Ugarit, where indications of the most ancient linguistic system was discovered; Greco-Roman period Greco-Roman sculptures from the ancient city, a significant ancient sites of the historical period; and a third century religious building that was established at an ancient location.
The museum was had to cease operations in the early 2010s, twelve months after the start of the internal strife. The majority of the collection was removed and stored at secret locations to safeguard them.
It began limited operations in 2018 and returned to normal in the beginning of the year, one month after opposition groups overthrew President Bashar al-Assad.
Each of the six of Syria's Unesco World Heritage sites were harmed or partly ruined during the internal struggle.
The IS organization demolished several religious structures and additional edifices at Palmyra, claiming that they were un-Islamic. Unesco condemned the damage as a violation.
Many historical objects were also damaged or stolen from historical locations and cultural institutions.
