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Historic sculptures and cultural objects have been taken from the National Museum of Syria in the capital, officials say.

The robbery was found on the start of the week, when staff allegedly found that one of the museum's doors had been forced from the interior.

The half-dozen missing statues were marble creations and originated to the ancient Roman times, an authority told the Associated Press.

Syria's Directorate-General for Antiquities and Museums said it had launched a probe to determine the "events surrounding the theft of a group of artifacts", and that steps had been enacted to strengthen safeguarding and monitoring systems.

The director of internal security in the Damascus region, Brig-Gen Osama Atkeh, was quoted by the government press as saying that authorities were investigating the robbery, which he said had affected several "historical artifacts and valuable objects".

He added that security personnel at the institution and additional people were being questioned.

The cultural institution, which was established in 1919, contains the significant cultural treasures in the country.

It contains historical records originating to the ancient era from an ancient city, where evidence of the oldest known complete alphabet was discovered; 1st and 2nd Century AD Greco-Roman sculptures from the ancient city, among the foremost historical locations of the historical period; and a ancient Jewish temple that was built at another archaeological site.

The museum was had to cease operations in the early 2010s, twelve months after the beginning of the devastating civil war. The majority of the holdings was transferred and preserved at undisclosed sites to safeguard them.

It partially resumed in 2018 and resumed full operations in January 2025, four weeks after insurgents overthrew Syria's former leader.

Each of the six of the country's cultural landmarks were damaged or significantly impacted during the civil war.

The militant faction demolished numerous temples and historical sites at the archaeological site, stating that they were un-Islamic. Unesco censured the demolition as a atrocity.

Countless historical objects were also damaged or taken from archaeological sites and museums.