Syria’s main international airport in Damascus will reopen next week, the new government said on Saturday, as it tries to re-establish a sense of normalcy after the uprising that toppled President Bashar al-Assad.

The announcement came amid tensions along the border between Syria and Lebanon, where four Lebanese soldiers were wounded in clashes on Friday night. The Lebanese military said that Syrian militants had fired at Lebanese soldiers along the border.

Ahmad al-Shara, Syria’s new de facto leader, faces the challenge of imposing order on a country that has been devastated by 14 years of civil war that split it into multiple warring regions and spurred a proliferation of armed groups.

al-Shara, who leads Hayat Tahrir al-Sham that spearheaded the attack that toppled al-Assad, has worked to project a moderate image, meeting with Western dignitaries and trying to assure both Syrians and foreign governments that the country is on a stable path.

New York Times News Service