Syrian Arab News Agency S A N A
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Damascus, SANA- Assistant Director of the laboratories at the Directorate-General of Antiquities and Museums (DGAM) Qasem Abdullah Yehiya was killed on Wednesday by a terrorist attack with rocket shells that targeted Damascus Citadel and Damascus National Museum.
The attack, which is part of a series of terrorist rocket and mortar attacks that targeted Damascus city’s residential areas on Wednesday and killed five civilians and injured 55 others, also caused material damages to the Citadel and the museum.
Director General of the DGAM Maamoun Abdul-Karim said in a statement to SANA that six rocket shells fell on Damascus Citadel and Damascus National Museum, killing Yehiya while he was inspecting the laboratories at the Department of Antiquities in Damascus Citadel, in addition to injuring a number of employees.
Abdul-Karim added that the terrorist attack caused material damages to the buildings of the museum and the castle which are included in the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites since 1979.
Abdul-karim noted that 13 workers at the DGAM were killed by terrorist attacks on archaeological sites in various provinces.
The late Yehiya held a master’s degree in chemistry applications in archeology from Italy. He was responsible for saving a number of archaeological artifacts during the current crisis.
Qabas/ Hazem Sabbagh
