Posted on May 22, 2026
Syria’s General Authority for Ports and Customs signed an agreement on 19 May 2026 with global shipping group CMA CGM to operate dry ports in the Adra and Aleppo free zones.
Damascus Deal Signing
Syria’s General Authority for Ports and Customs signed an agreement on Tuesday, 19 May 2026 with the global maritime transport and logistics company CMA CGM to operate two dry ports inside the country. The two facilities sit within the Adra free zone in the Damascus countryside and the Aleppo free zone, two of the country’s main customs-exempt commercial areas.
The signing took place at the authority’s headquarters in Damascus, where Qutaiba Badawi, the authority’s president, and Joseph Daqaq, the Middle East director for CMA CGM, formalized the contract.
What the Operator Will Run
Under the deal, CMA CGM will manage and operate the two dry-port facilities in line with international logistics standards. The authority described the arrangement as a step toward raising the efficiency of logistics services and improving the readiness of infrastructure linked to trade and transport movement.
Dry ports function as inland counterparts to seaports, allowing containers to be cleared, stored, and transferred between road, rail, and shipping outside the footprint of a coastal terminal.
Latakia–Adra Train Returns
The dry-port signing was accompanied by the first freight train running from the port of Latakia to the dry port at Adra, after a 14-year suspension. The train arrived with dozens of containers on board, restoring a rail link between Syria’s principal Mediterranean port and an inland logistics hub long disconnected from coastal traffic.
Corridor and Cost Goals
Officials presented the dry-port arrangement as part of a broader plan to integrate Syria’s seaports, border crossings, and inland dry ports into a single network covering both maritime and overland transport. The framework places the new operator directly alongside the resumed Latakia rail service as part of a connected logistics chain.
The stated aims include speeding up the movement of goods, lowering costs, easing the flow of trade, and lifting the efficiency of transport and logistics services across the country’s economic sectors.
