Ancient Statues Removed from the National Museum Located in Damascus
Historic sculptures and other artefacts have been taken from the National Museum of Syria in the capital, officials say.
The robbery was discovered on the start of the week, when employees apparently found that a doorway had been forced from the interior.
The half-dozen taken statues were marble creations and dated back to the Roman era, an authority stated to the media outlet.
Cultural heritage officials said it had launched a probe to determine the "details surrounding the theft of a collection of artifacts", and that measures had been taken to strengthen protection and monitoring systems.
The director of internal security in the Damascus region, Brig-Gen Osama Atkeh, was quoted by the official media as stating that law enforcement were investigating the incident, which he said had targeted several "historical artifacts and unique items".
He noted that museum protectors at the facility and additional people were being interviewed.
The National Museum, which was created in 1919, holds the most important archaeological collection in the country.
It includes clay cuneiform tablets originating to the 14th Century BC from Ugarit, where indications of the oldest known writing system was uncovered; early centuries CE ancient art from the ancient city, among the foremost cultural centres of the ancient world; and a third century synagogue that was built at Dura Europos.
The facility was had to cease operations in the early 2010s, one year after the beginning of the internal strife. A large portion of the holdings was evacuated and preserved at secret locations to protect them.
It partially resumed in recent years and completely reopened in early this year, one month after rebel forces deposed Syria's former leader.
Every one of Syria's Unesco World Heritage sites were damaged or partly ruined during the internal struggle.
The IS organization destroyed multiple religious structures and historical sites at the ancient city, stating that they were against their beliefs. International authorities censured the damage as a war crime.
Countless cultural items were also destroyed or taken from archaeological sites and museums.
