Ancient Statues Stolen from the National Museum Located in Damascus
Historic artifacts and cultural objects have been removed from the National Museum of Syria in Damascus, sources confirm.
The burglary was noticed on Monday, when employees apparently found that an entrance had been forced from the inside.
The multiple missing sculptures were made of marble and traced back to the Roman period, a source told the Associated Press.
Cultural heritage officials said it had launched a probe to establish the "details surrounding the theft of a group of items", and that measures had been taken to strengthen protection and observation methods.
The director of internal security in the capital area, Brig-Gen Osama Atkeh, was quoted by the official media as declaring that law enforcement were probing the incident, which he said had focused on several "historical artifacts and valuable objects".
He added that museum protectors at the museum and other persons were being questioned.
The Damascus Museum, which was founded in the early twentieth century, houses the significant archaeological collection in the country.
It contains clay cuneiform tablets originating to the 14th Century BC from Ugarit, where proof of the earliest writing system was uncovered; Greco-Roman period ancient art from historical site, among the foremost cultural centres of the historical period; and a third century religious building that was constructed at an ancient location.
The facility was forced to close in 2012, twelve months after the start of the destructive conflict. A large portion of the artifacts was evacuated and kept at secret locations to ensure their safety.
It began limited operations in 2018 and returned to normal in early this year, a month after opposition groups deposed the Assad regime.
Each of the six of the country's cultural landmarks were affected or partially destroyed during the internal struggle.
The Islamic State group destroyed multiple ancient buildings and other structures at the ancient city, claiming that they were un-Islamic. The cultural organization denounced the demolition as a war crime.
Countless cultural items were also destroyed or taken from historical locations and museums.
