DAMASCUS, Syria — Although not many people are planning vacations to Syria these days, Tourism Minister Bishr Yaziji remains busy promoting domestic tourism in territories that remain under government control.
Before civil war broke out in March 2011, Syria had been one of the world's leading tourist destinations in the Middle East, attracting millions of people from around the world thanks to its rich cultural heritage and history — Damascus and Aleppo are two of the world's oldest cities — and the beauty and diversity of its nature, including the sea, mountains and desert. Syria is home to more than 14,000 archaeological sites, 65 castles and a panoply of museums, mosques, churches and historic temples, many of which have unfortunately been destroyed during the war.
