Syrian government takes over management of airport held by Kurds

Syrian authorities have taken over management of Qamishli airport as part of an ongoing process to integrate Kurdish-led forces and institutions into the national government, state media reports.

The SANA news agency, citing the General Authority of Civil Aviation and Air Transport, says officials toured the facility today after assuming control and “discussed mechanisms to restart its operations.”

The head of the authority, Omar al-Husari, says on X that taking over the airport is “an important institutional step in the process of unifying the management of airports under the umbrella of the state.”

The Kurds — who controlled much of northeast Syria before striking the integration deal under military pressure from the government — had taken over the airport following the fall of longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad in late 2024.

While it was not open to civilian flights, Russia had used part of the facility as a base before withdrawing last month.

Qamishli is the only airport in northeastern Syria, and for years served as a lifeline for the region’s residents, particularly during nearly 14 years of civil war beginning in 2011, during which there were regular flights between it and Damascus.

The airport had remained under the government’s control during the war, and continued to receive flights up until Assad’s overthrow.