The Syrian General Authority for Civil Aviation and Air Transport took over the management of Qamishli Airport in eastern Syria on Saturday, in implementation of the January agreement between the central authorities and the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) to integrate Kurdish institutions into the state, amid ongoing disagreements over practical mechanisms. This is the only airport in the northeast of the country and is a vital artery for the region.

Published on: 02/21/2026 - 19:00 Last updated: 02/21/2026 - 19:30

On Saturday, the Syrian official news agency (SANA) reported that the authority “took over... the management of Qamishli Airport.” It stated, quoting a statement issued by the authority, that a number of its officials conducted a tour of the airport on Saturday and discussed mechanisms for restarting it in accordance with the highest international standards approved in the field of civil aviation, without specifying a date for that.

Authority Chairman Omar Al-Husri said on the “X” platform that taking over the airport is “an important institutional step within the process of unifying airport management under the umbrella of the state, and ensuring their operation in accordance with the highest international standards of safety and efficiency.”

Under military pressure from Damascus, the authorities and the Syrian Democratic Forces announced on January 30 an agreement stipulating the gradual integration of Kurdish forces and administrative institutions into the central authority.

According to the agreement, the Kurds must integrate their forces into four brigades in the army, in addition to handing over the oil fields that constituted their main financial source, the border crossings, and the airport to the government, but disagreements still exist over the practical mechanisms for implementation.

The historical importance of the airport

Al-Qamishli Airport, located in Al-Hasakah Governorate, is the only airport in northeastern Syria, and for years it constituted a vital artery for the residents of the region, especially during the period of the conflict that began in 2011, when there were regular flights between Damascus Airport and Al-Qamishli.​

In November 2019, Russian forces took the airport as a military base to supervise the implementation of an agreement that followed Turkey’s launch of a massive attack against Kurdish fighters, forcing them to withdraw from a large border area, until it withdrew its forces from it in January 2026.

France 24/AFP

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