LONDON: Syrian Airlines announced on Monday that direct flights between Berlin and Damascus will resume next month.

The first nonstop flight is scheduled to take off on Nov. 10, marking the airline’s first service connecting Germany with the Syrian Arab Republic in more than a decade. It halted flights to Europe during the Syrian civil war, which began in 2011 and ended in December 2024 with the fall of President Bashar Assad and his regime in the face of an opposition advance.

Syria’s General Authority for Civil Aviation and Air Transport said the decision by the airline would make it easier for Syrians living in Germany to visit or return to their home country, the Syrian Arab News Agency reported.

About 1 million Syrians settled in Germany after fleeing the civil war. In August, German carrier Sundair launched its first direct flight between the cities of Berlin and Damascus. In July, another German airline, Leav Aviation, began flying from Dusseldorf to Damascus.

Major international airlines canceled flights to Syria in the early stages of the civil war, effectively isolating the country from the rest of the world. Syrians who were able to travel abroad during the conflict were forced to make their way overland to nearby airports in Lebanon and Jordan.