By Nirmal Ghosh, Thailand Correspondent

BANGKOK: Anti-government protesters ended their paralysing eight-day blockade of Thailand's Suvarnabhumi International Airport yesterday, allowing for the resumption of the first handful of flights and raising the hopes of thousands of stranded travellers.

A Thai Airways domestic flight from Phuket with about 300 passengers was the first to land, touching down shortly after 2 pm, followed shortly by the first international flight, a Royal Jordanian airliner from Amman.

As protesters quit the Suvarnabhumi and Don Muang airports, some cargo flights resumed yesterday. More international flights - bound for Italy, Australia and Japan - were scheduled for midnight.

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