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Ancient statues and additional items have been stolen from Syria's National Museum in Damascus, sources confirm.

The burglary was discovered 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 stolen statues were marble creations and dated back to the Roman era, one official informed the Associated Press.

Syria's Directorate-General for Antiquities and Museums said it had opened an investigation to establish the "circumstances surrounding the loss of a number of exhibits", and that steps had been taken to enhance protection and observation methods.

The head of domestic security in the capital area, Security Chief Atkeh, was cited by the official media as saying that security forces were investigating the robbery, which he said had affected several "ancient sculptures and valuable objects".

He continued that security personnel at the institution and other individuals were being interrogated.

The National Museum, which was founded in the early twentieth century, contains the most important archaeological collection in Syria.

It features ancient inscribed tablets originating to the 14th Century BC from an ancient city, where proof of the most ancient complete alphabet was found; 1st and 2nd Century AD Greco-Roman sculptures from historical site, one of the most important ancient sites of the historical period; and a ancient religious building that was established at an ancient location.

The institution was had to cease operations in the early 2010s, a year after the beginning of the devastating civil war. Most of the collection was removed and preserved at secret locations to ensure their safety.

It partially resumed in 2018 and returned to normal in the beginning of the year, a month after insurgents overthrew the Assad regime.

Each of the six of Syria's Unesco World Heritage sites were affected or significantly impacted during the internal struggle.

The IS organization destroyed numerous temples and other structures at the ancient city, asserting that they were un-Islamic. The cultural organization censured the destruction as a atrocity.

Countless cultural items were also lost or looted from archaeological sites and collections.