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Valuable artifacts and other artefacts have been removed from the National Museum of Syria in Damascus, authorities report.

The burglary was discovered on Monday, when staff apparently found that one of the museum's doors had been forced from the inside.

The half-dozen taken pieces were crafted from marble and traced back to the ancient Roman times, one official informed the media outlet.

Cultural heritage officials said it had initiated an inquiry to identify the "circumstances surrounding the disappearance of a collection of items", and that measures had been enacted to improve safeguarding and observation methods.

The head of domestic security in the capital area, Brig-Gen Osama Atkeh, was cited by the government press as saying that law enforcement were probing the robbery, which he said had focused on several "ancient sculptures and rare collectibles".

He noted that security personnel at the museum and other persons were being interviewed.

The cultural institution, which was created in 1919, houses the significant cultural treasures in the country.

It contains ancient inscribed tablets originating to the ancient era from historical site, where proof of the oldest known writing system was found; Greco-Roman period classical statues from historical site, a significant cultural centres of the ancient world; and a ancient Jewish temple that was established at another archaeological site.

The institution was compelled to shut in 2012, twelve months after the beginning of the devastating civil war. A large portion of the collection was evacuated and preserved at secret locations to safeguard them.

It partially resumed in recent years and returned to normal in January 2025, four weeks after rebel forces removed President Bashar al-Assad.

Every one 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 the archaeological site, asserting that they were un-Islamic. The cultural organization censured the damage as a violation.

Many artefacts were also destroyed or looted from dig sites and cultural institutions.