Thieves steal ancient gold from Syria's museum

DAMASCUS:

Thieves made off with several ancient gold ingots from Syria's national museum in Damascus, a security source and another close to the institution's management said Tuesday.

The museum was spared during Syria's destructive civil war that ran from 2011 to late last year, and houses priceless artefacts dating back to antiquity.

The robbery took place overnight from Sunday to Monday, with the source close to the management telling AFP that "six items were stolen from the so-called classical wing" -- one of the museum's most important sections, home to artefacts from the Hellenistic, Roman and Byzantine eras.

They described the items as gold ingots, without specifying their age or provenance. The security source separately confirmed the details.

A manager at the museum declined to comment, saying only that the institution "is closed for security reasons and will reopen next week".