Saudi Arabia and others are overlooking the new leadership’s jihadist past, hoping to gain an advantage on rivals in the strategically positioned country.

Syria's new Islamist rulers said on Sunday that U.S. sanctions on Syria were an obstacle to the war-torn country's rapid recovery and urged Washington to lift them during a visit by Syrian officials to Qatar.

Could the return of Qatar Airways to Damascus tempt other international airlines to put the Syrian capital back on the route map?

Qatar is weighing a plan to provide Syria's new rulers with funds to increase public sector salaries, a diplomatic source said Thursday, as the interim government in Damascus seeks to rebuild state institutions.

A Qatari Air Force plane carrying 31 tonnes of food aid landed in the Syrian capital of Damascus, as part of the country's ongoing air bridge initiative to support the Syrian people, the Qatari Foreign Ministry announced.

The country’s new leaders are pushing to restore a sense of normalcy. But Syria remains under a host of international sanctions imposed during the Assad regime.

Syria's new rulers said on Sunday that US sanctions on Syria were an obstacle to the war-torn country's rapid recovery and urged Washington to lift them during a visit by Syrian officials to Qatar. "These sanctions constitute a barrier and an obstacle to the rapid recovery and development of the Syrian people who await services and partnerships from other countries,

Qatar has been a staunch supporter of Syria’s erstwhile Opposition long before the fall of the now ousted president Bashar al-Assad’s regime in December. When rebel forces from Hay’at

Doha: The State of Qatar has always been backing Syria's unity, Sovereignty and independence, and its people's state-building aspirations, after a years-long war that demolished many of the country's capacities, said Advisor to the Prime Minister and Official Spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) Dr. Majed bin Mohammed Al Ansari.

The discussions focused on strategic collaboration and development initiatives intended to rebuild the nation's infrastructure and institutions.

The national airline of Qatar has announced that it will resume weekly flights to Syria 13 years after cancelling operations. Qatar Airways will offer three weekly flights between Qatar and Damascus, Syria, from Tuesday (7 January). In 2011, flights by the carrier to and from Damascus and Aleppo were cancelled amid Syria’s civil war.