The director of Sirte Office of Antiquities, Abdel-Azim Hafez, has denied reports released by media outlets of looting antiquities from the ancient city of Sultan, 60 km east of Sirte.

In a statement to the Libyan News Agency on Sunday, Hafez said that all the artifacts are in safe hands and with the full knowledge of the Libyan Antiquities Authority and the UNESCO for fear of theft and sabotage due to the current situation in the country.

Earlier, environmental activist in Sirte, Saleh Drayagh, confirmed that the two bronze statues of the Philaeni brothers in Sultan town were stolen two years ago.

Drayagh posted in his Facebook page an old photo of the Philaeni brothers and another recent one that shows the theft of the statues. He reckoned that ISIS was behind the theft during their control of Sirte.

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