Russia's Aeroflot to suspend flights to Damascus

Russia's flagship airline Aeroflot says it is suspending flights to Syria's capital Damascus next month. State-controlled Aeroflot has four flights to Damascus and is the only Russian airline currently operating direct Moscow-Damascus flights. The company's spokeswoman Irina Dannenberg said Monday that Aeroflot will suspend the flights Aug. 6 for commercial reasons, according to a report of the Associated Press. A 16-month uprising in Syria has morphed into a civil war has killed more than 19,000, according to the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.