Syrian border crossings reopen

On Oct. 15, Syria reopened two border crossings that had been closed due to its civil war.

On its border with Jordan, to the south, the Nassib crossing reopened to civilian traffic months after it was retaken from rebels in July.

On its border with the Golan Heights in Israel, to the west, the Quneitra crossing reopened to UN forces. The UN had ceased operations in the area and closed the crossing in 2014 after 45 peacekeepers were abducted by al-Qaeda-allied rebels in Golan. The Quneitra crossing is not passable by travelers; it is currently meant only for UN monitoring troops, who patrol a buffer zone between Israel and Syria, which, technically, are still at war.