Syria, Saudi Arabia resume commercial flights despite sanctions
QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press) – Regular flights resumed on Wednesday between Syria and Saudi Arabia for the first time in over ten years as part of a thaw in relations between the countries, Syrian state media said.
Syria’s ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Ayman Soussan, said the resumption of flights was “an additional step in the process of development in relations between the two brotherly countries,” Syria’s state-run news agency SANA reported.
International sanctions have severely damaged the Syrian civil aviation industry, preventing it from importing airplanes and spare parts for the maintenance of planes.
In May, despite sanctions, Saudi Arabia sent equipment and spare parts for the maintenance of civil aviation via Bahrain to the Syrian government, days after Syrian President Bashar al-Assad attended the 33 Arab summit.
Syrian pilgrims flew directly to Saudi Arabia for the annual Islamic Hajj pilgrimage. However, Wednesday’s Syrian Airlines flight to Riyadh signal the resumption of regular commercial flights between the two countries.
In 2012, Syria and Saudi Arabia cut off diplomatic relations due to President Bashar Assad’s violent suppression of anti-government protests during the beginning of the civil war.
However, many Arab countries have since reinstated diplomatic relations with Syria, and the country was admitted back into the Arab League in 2023.