PrøvGOLD- Free

The Story Won't Die

Outlook|January 11, 2025
Is Israel's triumphalism over its land grab in Syria realistic? The hard reality is-Israel now has Al-Qaeda as a next-door neighbour
- MK Bhadrakumar
The Story Won't Die

Double, double toil and trouble; Fire burn and cauldron bubble.

-Act IV, Scene I, Macbeth, William Shakespeare

SOME wars end, many do not, but, like passenger trains, they linger in the siding, lost in thought, waiting for the superfast express to pass.

Wars end conclusively when they get wrapped up in a formal peace treaty. The war in Ukraine and the rekindling of the Syrian war fall in the latter category of sub-plots that turned rabid from the lies enveloping them with the passage of time. From such a perspective, the Syrian crisis can be traced to the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire by Britain and France through World War I by a secret pact known as the Sykes-Picot Agreement (1916) defining their mutually agreed spheres of influence and control in an eventual partition of that empire that lasted almost 600 years.

The force that spearheaded the operation this month to seize Damascus, with Türkiye's support, is called Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), which means the "Mission to Liberate the Levant". This must be properly understood while probing Türkiye's motivations in launching such a "jihadi" operation to shake up the modern Syrian state that was founded in 1946 at the end of the French mandate.

The use of the medieval term "Levant" is a repudiation of the word Syria, which was a coinage under the French mandate. That is to say, HTS implicitly denies the existence of a Syrian nation state. The landmass called Syria is, in the HTS conception, a vast ungoverned land, a part of the Caliphate, which is open to reshaping to reflect the current realities on the ground.

Turkish President Recep Erdogan openly alluded to this while addressing a meeting of the ruling AKP party on December 13 when he said: "The cities that we call Aleppo, Idlib, Damascus and Raqqa will become our provinces, like Antep, Hatay and Urfa!" Erdogan believes he's on the right side of history.

Denne historien er fra January 11, 2025-utgaven av Outlook.

Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9500+ magasiner og aviser.

Denne historien er fra January 11, 2025-utgaven av Outlook.

Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9500+ magasiner og aviser.

FLERE HISTORIER FRA OUTLOOKSe alt
Education for the Greater Good
Outlook

Education for the Greater Good

UEM Jaipur in its Mission to Provide Global Exposure with Innovative Teaching Techniques

time-read
4 mins  |
June 21, 2025
Delivering Care Everywhere
Outlook

Delivering Care Everywhere

Innovative healthcare, accessible to all communities across India

time-read
3 mins  |
June 21, 2025
First Model Hospital for Global destination with New Benchmarks
Outlook

First Model Hospital for Global destination with New Benchmarks

Yashoda Medicity is a holistic ecosystem, a convergence of medical brilliance, technology, education, and patient-centred values, poised to redefine healthcare delivery in India and beyond

time-read
3 mins  |
June 21, 2025
Green Growth: A New Normal
Outlook

Green Growth: A New Normal

Indian real estate embraces sustainable design, net-zero goals and eco-friendly innovation to shape resilient, future-ready urban landscapes.

time-read
3 mins  |
June 21, 2025
Precision Meets Expertise
Outlook

Precision Meets Expertise

Pioneering ROBOTIC Knee & Hip Replacements, Dr (Prof) Anil Arora is redefining mobility with advanced technology and compassionate care

time-read
2 mins  |
June 21, 2025
The 5 Best Monsoon Treks in Maharashtra
Outlook

The 5 Best Monsoon Treks in Maharashtra

This curated list of the best monsoon treks in Maharashtra highlights both natural beauty and historical significance of the state while also being ideal for lovers of adventure

time-read
3 mins  |
June 21, 2025
Batwoman
Outlook

Batwoman

Women have gatecrashed a stag party, smashing their way through the sexist walls of bias and invisibility to live their cricket dreams, no more in the margins but in the spotlight

time-read
7 mins  |
June 21, 2025
Elite Bench
Outlook

Elite Bench

Why diversity and inclusion in cricket remain elusive

time-read
5 mins  |
June 21, 2025
Outlook

'Write What Should Not be Forgotten'

Chilean-American author Isabel Allende’s latest book My Name is Emilia Del Valle, set during the 1891 Chilean civil war, is the story of a young woman’s search for her identity.

time-read
5 mins  |
June 21, 2025
It is Lonely at the Top
Outlook

It is Lonely at the Top

Chief Minister Omar Abdullah faces rebellion from within the National Conference. Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha is breathing down his neck. His political rival, Mehbooba Mufti, is sharpening her attack

time-read
5 mins  |
June 21, 2025

Vi bruker informasjonskapsler for å tilby og forbedre tjenestene våre. Ved å bruke nettstedet vårt samtykker du til informasjonskapsler. Finn ut mer