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Feb. 24 (UPI) — The director of the Louvre in Paris, Laurence des Cars, resigned her post Tuesday, months after thieves stole more than $100 million in jewels from the museum, French President Emanuel Macron announced.

The president accepted Cars’ letter of resignation, Macron’s office said, and welcomed the “act of responsibility.” The statement said the museum needs “calm” and strength to carry out major security and modernization projects.

Cars faced grilling by the French Senate in October after the brazen daylight heist of the jewels. A group of four thieves used a basket lift mounted to a truck to enter the museum through a second-floor balcony window and make off with historic jewelry. The loot included crowns, necklaces, tiaras and brooches worth much more than the individual value of the gems and precious metal were the thieves to melt down the pieces to sell the parts.

Among the items stolen were items once owned by French Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte and his wife, Empress Joséphine de Beauharnais.

French lawmakers questioned the efficacy of the Louvre’s safety measures in the weeks after the crime.

Auditors determined that the museum had fallen “considerably behind” in upgrading its technical infrastructure and security. The authors of the report took issue with the Louvre’s acquirement of 2,754 items over eight years, one-fourth of which were on display. These items — and renovations of displays — represent an investment of $167 million, double what the Louvre allocated for maintenance, upgrades and building restoration.

The report recommended that the Louvre eliminate a rule that requires the museum spend 20% of its ticket revenues — $143 million in 2024 — on acquiring new works. This would allow the facility to redirect funds to update the building without additional state funding. Auditors said the museum could also lean more heavily on its endowment fund to make the upgrades.

Interior Minister Anas Khattab’s order includes all listed as stateless and sets February 5 as deadline for its rollout.

Syria’s Ministry of Interior has ordered the immediate implementation of a new decree granting citizenship to Kurdish minorities, as government forces continue to consolidate control of the country after a rapid offensive against the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in the north of the country.

Interior Minister Anas Khattab issued the decision on Wednesday, mandating that the decree applies to all Kurds residing in Syria and explicitly includes those listed as stateless, the Anadolu news agency reported, citing the Syrian television station Alikhbariah.

The ministry has set a February 5 deadline for finalising the measures and their rollout, the report said.

Two weeks ago, Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa had declared the recognition of Kurdish as one of the country’s national languages and the restoration of citizenship to all Kurdish Syrians, as he announced a ceasefire between Syrian and Kurdish forces.

The rapid advance of Syrian forces forced the SDF to withdraw from more cities, including Raqqa and Deir Az Zor, allowing the government in Damascus to unite the country after a nearly 14-year-long ruinous civil war.

The development has drawn praise from United States President Donald Trump, who told al-Sharaa that he was “very happy” about the Syrian army offensive despite the previous US backing of the SDF.

Still, there have been reports of Kurdish civilians facing a shortage of food and displacement as a standoff between Syrian forces and the SDF continues in the country’s northern region.

According to the Anadolu report, the authorities in charge of rolling out al-Sharaa’s order have been asked to draft instructions and guidelines for the decree’s implementation at once.

Under al-Sharaa’s decree, the state has also been instructed to safeguard the culture and language of Syrian Kurds, as well as the teaching of the Kurdish language in public and private schools in Kurdish-majority areas.

The decree has also designated March 21 as the date of the Newroz festival, a nationwide celebration welcoming spring that is widely observed, not just in Syria.

On Wednesday, al-Sharaa met Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow to discuss the future of Syria and the presence of Russian troops in the country.

At the meeting, Putin praised his Syrian counterpart’s ongoing efforts to stabilise his country.

Since al-Sharaa’s forces toppled Russian ally Bashar al-Assad in December 2024, Moscow has been working to build relations with him and ensure a continued military foothold in the country to bolster its influence in the Middle East.