European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - April 7, 1985, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 16 the stars and stripes april Lebanon and Syria 20th Century creation the changing face of Syria the country we know today As Syria want always enclosed within such Well defined until world War the Fertile Region East of the Mediterranean was Home to a variety of ethnic and religious settlements collectively known As Syria had some local autonomy within the ottoman but that ended when the British and French divided the area after world War the partition separated Friendly neighbors while combining disparate thus were created the controversial barriers that exist in the Middle East today by Barbara Moffet National geographic although Lebanon and Syria have their differences they share a common until the end of world War the two countries were part of an area known As pulled apart by the allies at wars Many Leb anese and syrians have never fully accepted the much of the prosperous Mediterranean coast of Syria had been carved out to form isolating Many people from their most important even the two countries do not Exchange and citizens can Cross the Border in either direction with out until Syria an area of the Levant known in arabic As Billad a Sham had drifted along for 400 years As part of the sprawling ottoman considerably Arabi Zed since the Early Christian increasingly islami Zed since the seventh Century Syria was a Constellation of settlements in the Fertile area East of the Mediterranean sea today Leb and a Center of the caravan was its major Beirut was a minor City for most of that not yet significant As a though governed by Muslim the Otto Man Empire embraced a collection of diverse ethnic and religious no Muslim communities enjoyed considerable religious Freedom and local government in the area of mount for the maronite christians were free to follow their own and Faith As Long As they sent taxes to the ottoman capital of constantinople now Syria had nearly a dozen Christian several significant Muslim As Well As jews and some Small esoteric complicating the Britain foreign Arthur had told the zionists in a 1917 letter that his majesty government views with favour the establishment in Palestine of a National Home for the jewish one reason for the statement was a British desire to keep the French from growing Strong in another had been a party to the Sykes Picot but revolution soon brought in the bolsheviks unsympathetic to the allies they publicly revealed the text of the the stunned arabs eventually were placated by the and they continued to fight to end the the close of 400 years of ottoman Rule in Damascus came on when the torte were driven the next Day a Young British archaeologist named Thomas Edward Lawrence Lawrence of Arams Block Northern Cyprus 1983 it cognized Only to Turkey Syria 1946 a hit Damascus annexed by 1981 Amman Jordan saudi Arabia Kuwait 1961 300 i geographic society Independent arabian states Kuwait British raq ass Palestine British mandate Arabia of Abdulaziz Kuwait Ibn Saud British indefinite Boundary whom the British had assigned to join forces with the arabs under Emir entered two Days later atop a splendid arabian horse and followed by Arab made a triumphant entry into the where an Arab government was set the British commander of the egyptian expeditionary sir Edmund raced to Damascus to assert the principles of Sykes it was the arabs first direct encounter with the realities of the allies hold on the British and French continued to Wrangle Over the details of the land As the arabs pressed demands for at one in presi Dent Woodrow Wilson sent two envoys to Syria the King Crane commission to report on the they recommended that Syria become a constitutional monarchy under Faisal with mandatory but the commissions report was ignored by the Al and the United states at that time respected As a Neutral Power by the arabs retreated into Isola at a 1920 conference in san mandates were France taking the Northern part of Syria and Britain taking Palestine and approved by the league of the mandates were described As class meaning that France and Britain would eventually relinquish control and Grant full ind Epen the wilsonian plan of self determination was largely the americans were not even represented at the conference the Delegate bidder time in a hotel Garden awaiting instructions from Washington while the Mideast most important issues were the arabs had refused to give up the idea of immediate a general syrian con meeting in proclaimed Faisal King of including considering the proclamation a direct threat to its rights in the French overwhelmed the Arab army and entered Damascus to depose the France then turned to Mold its mandate territory along geographic and religious vastly enlarging the mount Lebanon area of ottoman Days the re Gion East and North of Beirut the French created the grand Liban greater which eventually became the Republic of greater Lebanon was dominated by maronite christians longtime French allies for eco nomic and strategic also took in Many mus the new configuration won approval from the maronite but Disfavour from Many who Felt Cut off from Arab nationalists on both sides of the line also believed their natural state had been improperly for a the French also split present Day Syria into Aleppo and for were separate but dependent states from 1920 to in the years that the syrians periodically revolted and were two decades of French Rule did have some benefits France built a system of schools and improved the regions transportation it took another world War to bring Independence in 1943 to Lebanon and no longer a Strong colonial finally pulled her troops out in but not before direct intervention by the to Cope with the tension Between sects in the newly Independent Republic of Christian and mus Lim leaders devised an unwritten agreement known As the National or it set up a Hierarchy for governing the the maronite who claimed a slim plurality receiving the largest share of followed by the sunni then came the shia the greek orthodox the and the greek the National pact is still roughly even though the shia muslims Are now regarded As the largest dissatisfaction among the groups on the lower rungs of the Power ladder has grown since in when palestinian commandos expelled from Jordan relocated in they found ready allies among some siding with the palestinians automatically pitted those lebanese against Israel and Drew the whole country deeper into the Israel Arab the situation has inevitably involved which considers itself the Center of the Arab nationalist move ment and believes that Lebanon should be part of Syrias own National Security interests were threatened in the lebanese civil War fearing a maronite israeli Syria aided the Muslim pal estonian a year Syria entered the War to pre vent a takeover by the Palestine liberation Organiza Tion which Syria at the time viewed As a threat to stability in the but As maronite forces grew in Syria tilted toward the an Alliance that survives in june 1982 israeli forces invaded seeking to crush the six months Lebanon and Israel began talks that led to the signing on May of an agreement calling for an end to brokered by Secretary of state George the agreement was not tolerable to Syria for Many to any treaty allowing Israel to patrol Leb anon constituted foreign intervention in a Region consid ered the heart of the Arab Syria did not seethe in under heavy pressure from syrian president Hafez lebanese president Amin Gemayel abrogated the treaty nine months after it was and realigned his policy to reflect Syrias renewed influence in