Emma Lundgren Jrum teaches Political Science in the Department of Government, Uppsala University, Sweden, where she also received her PhD. She also teaches Middle Eastern and Turkish history and politics in the Department of Linguistics and Philology at the same University. She has lived and worked extensively throughout the Middle East.
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Copyright 2014 Emma Lundgren Jrum
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Library of Modern Middle East Studies 155
ISBN 978 1 78076 742 0
eISBN 978 0 85773 780 9
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For my Syrian friends. It breaks my heart to see what you are going through.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Many people have contributed to this book in different ways. The multidisciplinary Borders, Boundaries and Transgressions research project on borders in the Middle East was what first led me to think about Syrian maps. Ever since our very first research meeting in Aleppo, the members of this project, Inga Brandell, sa Lundgren, Annika Rabo, Tetz Rooke and Roberta Micallef, have provided me with the intellectual framework needed for this study on Syrian policies towards territories lost. For this I am grateful. I would also like to especially thank Elizabeth Picard and Volker Perthes who read earlier versions of this book, shared their deep knowledge of Syrian and Lebanese politics and society and generously offered suggestions for improvement. Friends and colleagues at the Department of Government, the University of Uppsala, have provided inspiration and support. The Turkish, Syrian and British scholars who took part in the conference on Syrian-Turkish relations held at the University of St Andrews in July 2011 offered useful comments on my research on Hatay and extremely inspiring discussions on Syrian-Turkish relations in general. Thank you! Thank you also to Lars Whlin who drew the maps, sa Arbjrk who copy-edited the text and Maria Marsh for being such a patient and encouraging editor.
The year I spent at the Institut Franais dtudes Arabes de Damas proved invaluable once I decided to go into research (and for lots of other reasons). A special thank you to Maher al-Charif and Hassan Abbas for interesting discussions, encouragement and great teaching skills.
Nothing would have been possible had I not had the support of family and friends. You know who you are, thank you for your exceptional support in times of trouble. Last, but never least, thank you and love always to Felix, Fabian and Felicia my everything.
LIST OF MAPS
The Occupied Enemy Territory Administrations for the temporary administration of Geographical Syria after the cessation of World War I military operations
The French mandate in the early 1920s with the outlines of the previously autonomous Ottoman region of Mount Lebanon and the Golan Heights, occupied by Israel in 1967, marked
Syria and surrounding states 1946
CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION
When socialising a population to a specific territorial space there is probably no tool more efficient than the map. The precise image of territorial limits projected by maps, combined with our perception of these as correct representations of reality make them effective instruments for communicating the true extension of a state. The point of departure of this book is the territorial shape of the Syrian Arab Republic, as presented on official Syrian maps. Included as parts of the national territory are two areas no longer under de facto Syrian control: the Golan Heights, occupied by Israel since 1967, and Hatay (in Arabic liwa iskandarun), annexed by Turkey in 1939. Not included is an area Syria has often been accused of attempting to annex and over which it has exercised considerable political influence: Lebanon. All three areas were originally included in French Mandated Syria, created on the basis of the British-French Sykes-Picot agreement and given international legitimacy with the installation of the League of Nations mandate system following World War I. Even though the Golan was the only area that ever formed part of the post-1946 independent Syria, all three areas remain, in some way, present in the official Syrian discourse on the extension of the national territory. In both words and actions Syria signals that its relations to these three areas are stronger and different from those to other areas outside of its borders and/or control. It is clear that from an official Syrian point of view these three areas were unrightfully detached from Syria. At the same time it is also obvious that Syrian aims and priorities with regard to them differ.
This book explores and analyses change, consistency, similarities and differences in Syrian policies towards Lebanon, Hatay and the Golan Heights over time. The aim is to conclude what Syrian goals are with regard to these three territories and if Syrian views of them have changed over time. The book also seeks to suggest why certain territories lost remain on the agenda as something that needs to be regained while others do not. Furthering our understanding of the dynamic relationship between territory and state is thereby an over-arching aim of this study.
The relevance of the book
Within political science, much effort has been made to theorise state and nation building in various types of states and in different contexts. Territory, which is a necessary component of both state and nation building and a crucial precondition for any state to exist, has nevertheless largely been taken for granted. This study of Syrian policies towards territories lost suggests that the relationship between territory and state is dynamic and may change over time. Although the focus of this study is the territoriality of the state and the different policies it produces, readers with a mere empirical interest in Syria and the Middle East will also benefit from it. Despite its relatively small size and few natural resources, Syria has played a central role in Middle Eastern politics for decades. With regard to the Arab-Israeli conflict, it is widely recognised that while no major Arab-Israeli war will be fought without Egypt, no durable peace can be concluded without Syria. Syria is also considered an important actor with regard to the future of Iraq and, in view of its close relations to Iran, the Gulf Area as a whole. At the time of writing, there are fears that the civil war raging in Syria will have severe consequences in its neighbouring states and it can be concluded that Syria remains of utmost importance for regional stability.
