Syria News Wire

It’s official: Syria is one of the travel hotspots for 2010.
The New York Times puts Damascus at number 7. The paragraph sells the Syrian capital on the basis of its boutique hotels (really, is that the best you can come up with?), and was written by former Global Post Beirut correspondent Don Duncan (I’m still [...]

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Following the failed bomb attack on a US-bound plane, America has imposed tough new security measures.
Tough new security measures to add to the tough new security measures imposed after 9/11. Except that these tough new security measures only apply to some individuals. People who carry passports issued in: Syria, Cuba, Iran, Sudan, Nigeria, Afghanistan, Algeria, [...]

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Two minibuses have crashed head-on near Aleppo, killing two people and injuring nine.
The collision happened on Saturday night on the road between Aleppo and Afrin. One of the buses was heading towards Aleppo, the other one was travelling in the opposite direction.
A police officer says the buses were speeding.
Nine people are still being treated in [...]

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Damascus really is the new black. The hotels are filling up, flights are packed. But there is one massive downside: bad travel writing.
Journalists and travel writers (there is a big difference) are flocking to ‘discover’ Syria. And nearly every single one of them feels the need to use tired and worn cliches referring to the [...]

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Syria is in the newspapers, it’s on the TV, it’s in the bookshops. Listen up Europeans, Damascus is the hot new weekend getaway.
There has been a fifty per cent rise in package holidays from Europe over the past few years. The total number (which includes Arab tourists) was 1 million in 2001, with an aim [...]

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Syria has a terrible history of road accidents (like this and this). Now it looks like the crackdown has finally begun.
Speeding is one of the biggest causes of crashes, so speed cameras have been installed on highways in Aleppo and now Damascus too.
It follows the enforcement of the seatbelt laws – drivers and passengers routinely [...]

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A three-hundred-room Holiday Inn hotel is being built next to the Old City.
It will be the first international chain to be built so close to the city centre – the others (Four Seasons, Meridian/Dedeman and Sheraton) are all on the Mezzeh Autostrad. You’d need a taxi to get anywhere.
The company building the hotel says the [...]

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Speed cameras are being installed along the city’s three main highways: Mezzeh, Adawi and the Airport Road.

They will take photos of any car driving above the speed limit (60 kilometres per hour) and penalties can be sent directly to the registered owner.
It is hoped the cameras can finally sort out Syria’s terrible speeding problem. Drivers [...]

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Damascus Airport has finally included departure tax into ticket prices, as of today.

It means most passengers (starting with Syrianair) will no longer be hit by the 1500L surprise at the airport. Instead, tickets sold in Syria and abroad are all increasing by $30.
The departure stamp is a major cause of frustration, with many passengers forgetting to [...]

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12 people have died after a truck hit a bus in southern Syria.
Unlike previous incidents, this was a Pullman coach which was involved. It was travelling from Damascus to Sweida near the village of Assoura.
18 people have been injured – 4 are critically ill in intensive care.
It’s thought the two vehicles were travelling too fast.

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