The British Museum in London is going to return a persephonic statue to Libya after it has been looted from Shahat in 2012. The step is part of the cooperation to secure looted Libyan artifacts.

Libyan cultural attache said Thursday that the Libyan attaché d'affaires in London, Mohammed Al-Kouni, visited with a delegation the British Museum to see the statue.

The attaché added that the statue will be returned to Libya soon after reaching an agreement with the British government.

The Secretary General of British Commission at the UNESCO vowed in January 2019 to keep a close eye on the Libyan looted artifacts in London Museum and to return them to Libya.

Asharq Al-Awsat reported earlier a source from Libyan Antiquities Authority as saying that the case of the persephonic statue has been under deliberations at Westminster Court for years as the paper provided by a potential owner were proved forged. UK Mirror newspaper said the statue was worth one million pounds and was smuggled into Britain by people claiming it was coming from Turkey and was worth 60.000 pounds.