Ancient Sculptures Taken from the National Museum Located in Damascus
Historic artifacts and additional items have been stolen from Syria's National Museum in the capital, officials say.
The robbery was discovered on Monday, when staff reportedly found that one of the museum's doors had been damaged from the interior.
The multiple taken statues were crafted from marble and originated to the ancient Roman times, an authority informed the Associated Press.
Cultural heritage officials said it had launched a probe to identify the "circumstances surrounding the loss of a collection of artifacts", and that measures had been taken to enhance safeguarding and monitoring systems.
The chief of domestic security in the Damascus region, Brig-Gen Osama Atkeh, was referenced by the state-run Sana news agency as stating that security forces were probing the incident, which he said had targeted several "archaeological statues and unique items".
He noted that security personnel at the institution and other individuals were being interrogated.
The Damascus Museum, which was created in 1919, holds the significant archaeological collection in Syria.
It includes clay cuneiform tablets tracing back to the 14th Century BC from an ancient city, where evidence of the earliest writing system was discovered; Greco-Roman period Greco-Roman sculptures from historical site, a significant ancient sites of the ancient world; and a 3rd Century AD synagogue that was constructed at another archaeological site.
The facility was had to cease operations in 2012, a year after the beginning of the devastating civil war. A large portion of the artifacts was transferred and preserved at secure places to ensure their safety.
It began limited operations in 2018 and resumed full operations in early this year, four weeks after opposition groups removed President Bashar al-Assad.
All six of Syria's Unesco World Heritage sites were harmed or partly ruined during the civil war.
The Islamic State group blew up several ancient buildings and other structures at the ancient city, asserting that they were un-Islamic. Unesco condemned the destruction as a atrocity.
Numerous artefacts were also damaged or looted from dig sites and collections.
