Europol nabs thousands of ancient artifacts in massive operation

Police from 18 countries recovered over 3,500 stolen works of art and ancient artifacts of “great cultural importance” in a joint operation last year, the European police agency says.

The haul included a marble Ottoman tombstone, a post-Byzantine icon depicting Saint George and hundreds of coins, Europol says.

Dubbed Operation Pandora, the crackdown took place last October and November, leading to the recovery of 3,561 pieces and 75 arrests.

Officials tell AFP that it was hard to put a total value on the haul, as experts had yet to appraise it.

“Several of the retrieved artifacts are of great cultural importance in the archaeological world,” the agency, based in The Hague, says in a statement.

— AFP