Valuable Sculptures Removed from the National Museum Located in Damascus
Valuable sculptures and cultural objects have been removed from the National Museum of Syria in the capital, sources confirm.
The theft was discovered on the start of the week, when museum workers apparently found that an entrance had been broken from the inside.
The half-dozen taken statues were marble creations and traced back to the ancient Roman times, a source stated to the media outlet.
The nation's antiquities authority said it had launched a probe to identify the "events surrounding the disappearance of a collection of items", and that measures had been implemented to enhance security and surveillance.
The chief of domestic security in the capital area, General Osama Atkeh, was referenced by the official media as declaring that law enforcement were examining the robbery, which he said had focused on several "ancient sculptures and unique items".
He noted that security personnel at the museum and other individuals were being questioned.
The Damascus Museum, which was established in 1919, holds the most important cultural treasures in the country.
It contains historical records dating back to the Bronze Age from an ancient city, where indications of the most ancient linguistic system was found; 1st and 2nd Century AD Greco-Roman sculptures from Palmyra, a significant historical locations of the ancient world; and a third century Jewish temple that was constructed at an ancient location.
The facility was had to cease operations in 2012, twelve months after the beginning of the devastating civil war. A large portion of the holdings was evacuated and stored at secret locations to protect them.
It partially resumed in recent years and completely reopened in January 2025, a month after opposition groups overthrew the Assad regime.
Each of the six of the country's cultural landmarks were affected or partially destroyed during the civil war.
The militant faction destroyed several religious structures and additional edifices at the ancient city, claiming that they were against their beliefs. Unesco censured the demolition as a atrocity.
Countless artefacts were also lost or stolen from historical locations and collections.