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Ancient statues and cultural objects have been removed from the National Museum of Syria in the capital, officials say.

The robbery was discovered on Monday, when museum workers reportedly found that one of the museum's doors had been broken from the inside.

The six taken statues were made of marble and dated back to the ancient Roman times, a source told the media outlet.

Cultural heritage officials said it had launched a probe to determine the "circumstances surrounding the disappearance of a collection of artifacts", and that actions had been enacted to strengthen security and surveillance.

The director of national security in the Damascus region, General Osama Atkeh, was referenced by the state-run Sana news agency as declaring that law enforcement were probing the robbery, which he said had focused on several "archaeological statues and unique items".

He added that security personnel at the museum and other individuals were being interrogated.

The cultural institution, which was created in 1919, contains the significant archaeological collection in the country.

It contains clay cuneiform tablets tracing back to the ancient era from an ancient city, where indications of the earliest linguistic system was discovered; Greco-Roman period classical statues from historical site, a significant cultural centres of the classical era; and a third century synagogue that was established at an ancient location.

The museum was forced to close in 2012, twelve months after the outbreak of the destructive conflict. A large portion of the collection was transferred and kept at secret locations to protect them.

It reopened partially in recent years and resumed full operations in early this year, a month after opposition groups deposed the Assad regime.

All six of nationally recognized sites were harmed or partly ruined during the internal struggle.

The Islamic State group demolished several ancient buildings and additional edifices at the ancient city, claiming that they were idolatrous. The cultural organization censured the demolition as a violation.

Numerous cultural items were also damaged or taken from archaeological sites and museums.