Commercial flights have resumed after the international airport in Tonga reopened Monday.

Flights have now resumed to and from Sydney of Australia, Auckland of New Zealand and Samoa, Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) radio reported.

The airport had been closed to commercial airlines since Thursday when violent riots broke out in the capital of Nuku'alofa, in which eight people died and 80 percent of the central business district was destroyed.

About 150 Australian and New Zealand troops and police arrived in the south Pacific island country Saturday to help restore law and order.

ABC quoted the New Zealand commander of the peacekeepers, Darren Beck, as saying that the priority is to ensure the smooth evacuation of hundreds of tourists and locals anxious to leave the kingdom.

Source: Xinhua