Valuable Sculptures Stolen from the National Museum Located in Damascus
Valuable artifacts and additional items have been taken from the National Museum of Syria in Damascus, sources confirm.
The robbery was found on Monday, when employees apparently found that one of the museum's doors had been damaged from the inside.
The multiple stolen pieces were crafted from marble and originated to the Roman era, an authority stated to the news agency.
Cultural heritage officials said it had launched a probe to identify the "details surrounding the theft of a group of artifacts", and that measures had been enacted to improve safeguarding and monitoring systems.
The director of internal security in Damascus province, General Osama Atkeh, was referenced by the government press as stating that security forces were examining the incident, which he said had focused on several "historical artifacts and valuable objects".
He added that guards at the institution and additional people were being interrogated.
The Damascus Museum, which was founded in the early twentieth century, holds the most important archaeological collection in the country.
It features ancient inscribed tablets originating to the 14th Century BC from Ugarit, where evidence of the earliest linguistic system was discovered; Greco-Roman period Greco-Roman sculptures from Palmyra, one of the most important cultural centres of the historical period; and a third century synagogue that was established at an ancient location.
The museum was forced to close in 2012, twelve months after the outbreak of the destructive conflict. A large portion of the collection was evacuated and preserved at secret locations to ensure their safety.
It partially resumed in 2018 and resumed full operations in early this year, one month after insurgents removed the Assad regime.
Each of the six of nationally recognized sites were damaged or significantly impacted during the internal struggle.
The IS organization blew up multiple ancient buildings and other structures at the ancient city, asserting that they were idolatrous. The cultural organization denounced the damage as a war crime.
Countless cultural items were also destroyed or stolen from historical locations and museums.
