BAGHDAD

Iraq will resume flights between Baghdad and Beirut, Lebanon next week following a three-week suspension after the Syrian regime's overthrow, Iraq’s Transport Minister Razzaq Muhibis Al-Saadawi said on Saturday.

The official news agency INA reported that flights are set to restart early in 2025.

Under the directive of Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani, flights will resume next week "to meet the needs of Iraq's guests, including Lebanese citizens wishing to voluntarily return to their country."

Iraqi Airways General Manager Manaf Abdul Munim said the airline had “completed all technical and logistical preparations to resume voluntary evacuation flights. Scheduled flights between Baghdad and Beirut will resume as of January 1, 2025."

“This step will facilitate air travel between Iraq and Lebanon and boost trade and tourism exchange between the two brotherly countries,” he added.

The airline encouraged passengers to "take advantage of the reopening of this vital route, which will initially operate seven weekly flights, with the possibility of doubling the number of flights based on demand and situational evaluations."

On Dec. 8, around the time Syria’s Assad regime was collapsing, the Iraqi Transport Ministry temporarily suspended flights between Baghdad and Beirut, citing "current security developments in Syrian airspace, which is the main corridor for these flights."

*Writing by Rania Abu Shamala