{
  "id": 9539752,
  "title": "US returns ancient looted treasures to Syria",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/24/us-returns-ancient-looted-treasures-to-syria",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-09-24T10:43:23.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The National UAE",
    "slug": "the-national-uae",
    "url": "https://www.thenationalnews.com/news/mena/2026/09/24/syria-palmyra/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "In a historic move, the United States has returned 36 ancient treasures to Syria, including Roman mosaics and a stone relief looted from the ancient desert kingdom of Palmyra. The artifacts, valued at $5 million, were seized from a suspected Lebanese trafficker and an American collector. Syrian President Ahmad Al Shara received the items at a New York ceremony attended by Tom Barrack, Trump's envoy to Syria. The return of the treasures marks a significant step in Syria's international rehabilitation efforts. Among the returned items is a stone relief from Palmyra, which was under ISIS control between 2015 and 2016. The mosaics and relief were part of a larger investigation into the trafficking of artifacts into New York, with some pieces originating from a $70 million haul seized from art collector Michael Steinhardt and another from a trafficker named Eugene Alexander. The return of the artifacts brings a part of Syria's history back to its rightful place.",
  "summary": "US authorities have returned to Syria “extraordinary” Roman mosaics and other looted treasures seized from a suspected Lebanese trafficker and a renowned American collector, the Manhattan District Attorney's Office has said. Some of the pieces were smuggled out of Syria during the country's 2011-2024 civil war , while others had been missing since at least the 1980s, according to District…",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "The National Business",
        "title": "US returns ancient looted treasures to Syria",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/24/us-returns-ancient-looted-treasures-to-syria-9541925",
        "published": "2026-09-24T10:43:23.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}