Historic Statues Stolen from Syria's National Museum Located in Damascus
Valuable statues and other artefacts have been removed from the National Museum of Syria in Damascus, officials say.
The burglary was discovered on Monday, when museum workers allegedly found that a doorway had been broken from the interior.
The multiple stolen statues were crafted from marble and traced back to the Roman period, a source informed the Associated Press.
Syria's Directorate-General for Antiquities and Museums said it had opened an investigation to establish the "details surrounding the loss of a group of exhibits", and that actions had been taken to improve safeguarding and monitoring systems.
The director of internal security in the Damascus region, General Osama Atkeh, was quoted by the state-run Sana news agency as declaring that security forces were examining the theft, which he said had affected several "historical artifacts and rare collectibles".
He continued that guards at the institution and other persons were being interrogated.
The Damascus Museum, which was founded in the early twentieth century, houses the most important archaeological collection in the country.
It contains ancient inscribed tablets originating to the ancient era from an ancient city, where evidence of the most ancient linguistic system was uncovered; Greco-Roman period Greco-Roman sculptures from the ancient city, among the foremost historical locations of the classical era; and a 3rd Century AD Jewish temple that was built at an ancient location.
The institution was forced to close in the early 2010s, one year after the beginning of the internal strife. The majority of the holdings was removed and preserved at secret locations to ensure their safety.
It partially resumed in 2018 and resumed full operations in the beginning of the year, one month after opposition groups overthrew the Assad regime.
Each of the six of nationally recognized sites were harmed or partially destroyed during the internal struggle.
The IS organization blew up several ancient buildings and other structures at the archaeological site, asserting that they were against their beliefs. The cultural organization condemned the destruction as a atrocity.
Numerous cultural items were also damaged or looted from historical locations and cultural institutions.
