As Assad advances, Syria launches commercial airline

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By Oliver Holmes BEIRUT (Reuters) - A new Syrian airline plans to start flights from the war-torn country in May, a company manager told Reuters on Wednesday, following months of gains on the battlefield by forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad. The launch of Kinda Airlines, a private company, illustrates how Assad has been able - in part - to weather the three-year conflict, securing the capital and areas of the Mediterranean coast even as rebels advance in the **rth and east. Esmail Sharaf, Vice Commercial Manager, told Reuters that Kinda Airlines will operate out of Damascus International airport and the coastal city of Latakia. It aims to fly to more than 10 destinations within a year, including the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Iraq, and "hopefully Leba**n and Jordan".

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