Historic Artifacts Taken from Syria's National Museum in Damascus
Valuable sculptures and additional items have been removed from Syria's National Museum in Damascus, officials say.
The burglary was found on Monday, when employees apparently found that an entrance had been forced from the interior.
The half-dozen stolen sculptures were made of marble and traced back to the ancient Roman times, an authority stated to the Associated Press.
The nation's antiquities authority said it had initiated an inquiry to identify the "circumstances surrounding the disappearance of a group of exhibits", and that steps had been taken to enhance security and monitoring systems.
The head of domestic security in the capital area, Security Chief Atkeh, was cited by the government press as declaring that law enforcement were examining the theft, which he said had targeted several "historical artifacts and rare collectibles".
He noted that guards at the institution and other individuals were being questioned.
The cultural institution, which was created in 1919, holds the most important cultural treasures in the country.
It includes clay cuneiform tablets originating to the ancient era from an ancient city, where proof of the earliest linguistic system was discovered; early centuries CE classical statues from Palmyra, among the foremost cultural centres of the classical era; and a ancient synagogue that was built at Dura Europos.
The facility was compelled to shut in the early 2010s, a year after the beginning of the internal strife. A large portion of the holdings was transferred and kept at secure places to ensure their safety.
It began limited operations in recent years and completely reopened in the beginning of the year, four weeks after insurgents overthrew the Assad regime.
All six of nationally recognized sites were harmed or partially destroyed during the civil war.
The militant faction blew up several religious structures and other structures at Palmyra, stating that they were idolatrous. Unesco denounced the destruction as a atrocity.
Many historical objects were also destroyed or stolen from dig sites and cultural institutions.