New York Returns 36 Stolen Antiquities Worth $5 Million to Syria
Thirteen of the pieces had been seized from the Metropolitan Museum of Art as part of an investigation into international antiquities trafficking.
The New York court has returned 36 antiquities estimated at about $5 million to Syria, following an investigation into an international network of trafficking in archaeological objects.
Thirteen of these pieces were seized from the Metropolitan Museum of Art, one of the most prestigious museums in the world, after investigations established that they came from illicit trafficking. The other objects returned were recovered after similar procedures carried out by the judicial authorities.
The Manhattan prosecutor's office played a central role in this case. Its antiquities trafficking unit has been conducting investigations for several years to identify and seize looted archaeological objects, particularly those from conflict zones in the Middle East, before returning them to their country of origin.
The return of the 36 pieces to Syria is part of a series of similar operations carried out in recent years by the US justice system, which has strengthened its cooperation with the Syrian authorities and heritage experts to trace the provenance of objects suspected of having been looted or stolen during the Syrian civil war.
The authorities have not specified at this stage the timetable or the modalities of the physical return of the objects to Syrian soil.
Sources
- La justice new-yorkaise restitue à la Syrie 36 antiquités d’une valeur de 5 millions de dollars — Le Monde — Une
EGazette summarizes reporting from multiple sources; follow the links for the originals.
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