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Valuable statues and additional items have been removed from the National Museum of Syria in the capital, sources confirm.

The burglary was discovered on the start of the week, when staff apparently found that a doorway had been broken from the interior.

The six stolen sculptures were marble creations and originated to the Roman era, one official informed the media outlet.

Cultural heritage officials said it had initiated an inquiry to identify the "details surrounding the loss of a group of exhibits", and that actions had been enacted to improve safeguarding and observation methods.

The director of national security in the Damascus region, General Osama Atkeh, was referenced by the government press as declaring that law enforcement were examining the robbery, which he said had targeted several "archaeological statues and rare collectibles".

He continued that guards at the museum and additional people were being questioned.

The Damascus Museum, which was established in the early twentieth century, contains the primary archaeological collection in the country.

It includes historical records originating to the 14th Century BC from an ancient city, where proof of the most ancient linguistic system was discovered; Greco-Roman period ancient art from the ancient city, among the foremost cultural centres of the ancient world; and a ancient synagogue that was built at another archaeological site.

The museum was had to cease operations in 2012, a year after the outbreak of the internal strife. The majority of the artifacts was transferred and kept at undisclosed sites to protect them.

It began limited operations in 2018 and returned to normal in January 2025, one month after opposition groups overthrew Syria's former leader.

Every one of Syria's Unesco World Heritage sites were affected or partially destroyed during the internal struggle.

The IS organization demolished numerous religious structures and other structures at the ancient city, stating that they were against their beliefs. The cultural organization denounced the damage as a atrocity.

Numerous artefacts were also lost or looted from historical locations and museums.