🔗 Share this article Historic Sculptures Stolen from Syria's National Museum in Damascus The National Museum reopened fully in the first month of 2025, four weeks after the deposition of President Bashar al-Assad. Valuable artifacts and other artefacts have been taken from Syria's National Museum in the capital, sources confirm. The robbery was found on Monday, when employees allegedly found that one of the museum's doors had been broken from the interior. The multiple stolen pieces were made of marble and traced back to the ancient Roman times, an authority informed the media outlet. Cultural heritage officials said it had initiated an inquiry to identify the "details surrounding the theft of a collection of exhibits", and that measures had been enacted to strengthen protection and observation methods. The head of domestic security in the capital area, Brig-Gen Osama Atkeh, was referenced by the state-run Sana news agency as saying that authorities were probing the robbery, which he said had affected several "archaeological statues and rare collectibles". He noted that security personnel at the facility and other individuals were being questioned. The Damascus Museum, which was created in 1919, houses the significant historical artifacts in Syria. It features ancient inscribed tablets tracing back to the 14th Century BC from Ugarit, where indications of the earliest linguistic system was found; early centuries CE classical statues from historical site, among the foremost ancient sites of the ancient world; and a third century synagogue that was constructed at Dura Europos. The facility was forced to close in 2012, a year after the outbreak of the devastating civil war. The majority of the collection was removed and stored at secure places to ensure their safety. It partially resumed in recent years and resumed full operations in the beginning of the year, a month after rebel forces removed the Assad regime. Each of the six of nationally recognized sites were damaged or partly ruined during the conflict. The militant faction demolished multiple ancient buildings and historical sites at the archaeological site, asserting that they were idolatrous. Unesco condemned the destruction as a war crime. Countless cultural items were also destroyed or looted from archaeological sites and collections.