France’s return of Syrian artefacts revives debate over delayed restitution

France has returned 23 Syrian archaeological artefacts that had remained in Paris since before the outbreak of Syria’s civil war, handing them back during French President Emmanuel Macron’s recent visit to Damascus. Though the return has been widely welcomed, it has also raised questions over why the artefacts were not returned earlier.

According to Syria’s Foreign Ministry, the artefacts were transported back to Syria aboard the French presidential aircraft after being displayed as part of an exhibition of Syrian antiquities at the Arab World Institute in Paris, as the Arab News portal reported.

The objects had been loaned to France in 2010, during the rule of former Syrian President Bashar Assad, by museums in Damascus, Aleppo, Latakia and Palmyra. They were originally scheduled to return in 2014, but remained in France after diplomatic relations between Paris and Damascus were cut following the outbreak of the Syrian conflict in March 2011.

For some observers, the handover represents a symbolic step toward restoring diplomatic ties between France and Syria. Others view it as the completion of a long-delayed return process.

Syrian journalist Loujein Haj Youssef, based in Paris, told the outlet that France had chosen to rebuild relations “on the basis of respect for history and shared memory.” She described the repatriation as a “gesture of goodwill” and said it demonstrated that ties with Syria could be separated from the legacy of France’s colonial past.

Syria was under French mandate from the early 1920s until independence in 1946, a period widely viewed in the region as colonial rule due to France’s direct political and military control over the territory.

Madison Leeson, an Amman-based researcher specializing in cultural heritage crime, also welcomed the return, calling it “a victory for Syria to get these back where they belong.”

She said she hoped the move would become “the first of many repatriations,” adding that French President Emmanuel Macron’s support for the restitution of cultural objects made France’s decision unsurprising.

Haj Youssef linked the return to France’s broader cultural restitution policy, including legislation adopted in May allowing the return of artefacts taken during the colonial period. The law followed a pledge made by Macron in 2017 to open what he described as a “new chapter” in relations between France and former colonies.

However, the journal underscores in its reporting that the Syrian case differs from many other restitution disputes. The 23 artefacts were not taken during the colonial era but were legally loaned to the Arab World Institute in Paris and were expected to be returned in 2014, according to Syria’s Directorate-General of Antiquities and Museums.

Instead, the artefacts remained in France after diplomatic ties collapsed and international sanctions were imposed on Syria during the war.

Maamoun Abdulkarim, Syria’s former director-general of antiquities and museums, urged that the artefacts belong to the Syrian people regardless of which government is in power and argued that their return could have been arranged earlier through international mediation.

“These artifacts belong to the Syrian people, not to any political regime,” he said.

By Nazrin Sadigova