Jordan's state carrier to resume direct flights to Damascus from Oct 3

Jordan's state carrier Royal Jordanian (RJ) will resume direct flights to Damascus from Oct. 3, an official statement on state-owned Mamlaka television said. Flights had been suspended at the start of the decade-old conflict in Syria.

Jordan's state carrier Royal Jordanian (RJ) will resume direct flights to Damascus from Oct. 3, an official statement on state-owned Mamlaka television said.

Flights had been suspended at the start of the decade-old conflict in Syria. The decision was part of several steps taken at the end of a two-day ministerial meeting held in Amman between the two countries on boosting trade, investment, and transport ties.

Jordan will fully reopen its main border crossing with Syria from Wednesday, the Jordanian government and industry officials said on Monday. The move was to help ease the flow of goods hit by the pandemic and a decade of conflict, they added.

Jordan, a staunch U.S. ally, which supported mainstream rebels fighting against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's rule, has pushed for rapprochement with Damascus in recent months, officials said.