Ancient Artifacts Taken from the National Museum in Damascus
Valuable sculptures and other artefacts have been removed from Syria's National Museum in the capital, officials say.
The robbery was noticed on the start of the week, when employees allegedly found that an entrance had been forced from the inside.
The half-dozen stolen statues were crafted from marble and traced back to the ancient Roman times, one official told the news agency.
Syria's Directorate-General for Antiquities and Museums said it had opened an investigation to identify the "circumstances surrounding the loss of a number of exhibits", and that actions had been implemented to strengthen protection and observation methods.
The director of domestic security in Damascus province, General Osama Atkeh, was referenced by the government press as declaring that law enforcement were examining the incident, which he said had affected several "archaeological statues and unique items".
He continued that security personnel at the museum and other individuals were being interviewed.
The National Museum, which was established in 1919, contains the significant archaeological collection in Syria.
It features historical records dating back to the 14th Century BC from Ugarit, where evidence of the oldest known complete alphabet was uncovered; 1st and 2nd Century AD Greco-Roman sculptures from Palmyra, a significant ancient sites of the ancient world; and a ancient religious building that was constructed at an ancient location.
The museum was forced to close in the early 2010s, twelve months after the beginning of the destructive conflict. The majority of the collection was removed and stored at undisclosed sites to protect them.
It began limited operations in recent years and completely reopened in the beginning of the year, one month after opposition groups removed Syria's former leader.
Each of the six of nationally recognized sites were harmed or significantly impacted during the civil war.
The militant faction demolished several ancient buildings and other structures at the archaeological site, stating that they were un-Islamic. Unesco denounced the damage as a atrocity.
Numerous cultural items were also damaged or looted from archaeological sites and cultural institutions.
