Why the Middle East Is So Complicated

“In outline (and again this is an extremely complex matter) the Sunni Arabs of Syria feel that the boundary with Turkey should be pushed back and all the others, being artificial, should be eliminated. Syria’s minorities accept the boundary with Iraq but otherwise share the Sunnis’ views. In Lebanon, the Maronites, Druze, and Shi'a want the boundaries where they are, while Sunnis most want to bring them down, and Greek Orthodox are most ambivalent. Some Jewish Israelis see Israel ultimately in its 1949 borders (with minor changes), while others would extend the borders to include the West Bank and Gaza Strip. Some Palestinian Arabs see Palestine as expansionist Israelis see Israel; others go beyond this and see it including Jordan, too. Depending on era, Jordanians have seen Jordan within its present borders, with the addition of the West Bank, with the addition of all Israel, or with the addition of Syria and even Lebanon.”

– Daniel Pipes, “Greater Syria: The History of an Ambition” [ISBN 0-19-506022-9], p. 40