The final Sykes-Picot fail

For those with an interest in Middle-Eastern history, the news from Syria is heartbreaking. Having overthrown the vicious al-Assad regime, which adhered to the Alawite branch of Islam, a new leader emerged. This man's appearance and credentials were so impressive that even President Trump was disposed to express hope for Syria's future. But as in all things Middle-Eastern, nature abhors a vacuum and the Muslim Bedouin immediately attacked the non-Muslim Druze. The butchery was about the same as October 7th and news footage today shows Bedouin ransacking Druze property including farm tractors and livestock. Messrs Sykes and Picot were an Anglo-French duo charged, post WW1, with devising borders for a series of nations, including Syria. The lofty thought was that having the yoke of the Ottoman Caliphate lifted, the peoples were ripe for secular democracy. But no, the urge to settle old scores was too strong. Is the answer a return to the Caliphate, but given that recent contenders for Caliph have been Osama Bin Laden and Saddam Hussein and lately, Turkey's Erdogan, I'm pessimistic. 

The above was printed in 'The Post' Wednesday 23 July. Since writing I have seen Bedouins complaining that the Druze attacked them. Given that all the killings and looting took place in Druze homes, it's not a feasible scenario.