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

The burglary was discovered on the start of the week, when museum workers reportedly found that a doorway had been forced from the inside.

The six taken statues were marble creations and traced back to the Roman period, a source stated to the news agency.

Syria's Directorate-General for Antiquities and Museums said it had launched a probe to determine the "details surrounding the theft of a collection of items", and that measures had been implemented to enhance security and monitoring systems.

The director of national security in the Damascus region, Brig-Gen Osama Atkeh, was quoted by the official media as stating that authorities were investigating the robbery, which he said had affected several "ancient sculptures and unique items".

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

The National Museum, which was created in 1919, contains the most important cultural treasures in the country.

It contains ancient inscribed tablets tracing back to the ancient era from Ugarit, where indications of the earliest linguistic system was uncovered; 1st and 2nd Century AD Greco-Roman sculptures from historical site, among the foremost cultural centres of the classical era; and a ancient synagogue that was established at Dura Europos.

The facility was had to cease operations in the early 2010s, one year after the outbreak of the destructive conflict. Most of the holdings was evacuated and kept at undisclosed sites to protect them.

It began limited operations in 2018 and returned to normal in the beginning of the year, one month after insurgents deposed the Assad regime.

Every one of nationally recognized sites were affected or partly ruined during the conflict.

The Islamic State group destroyed numerous temples and historical sites at the ancient city, stating that they were against their beliefs. International authorities denounced the destruction as a war crime.

Countless artefacts were also lost or stolen from historical locations and cultural institutions.