By James M. Dorsey

Syria tells the story of not one but three occupations. It also tells the story of a region in which states cynically trample over ethnic groups’ aspirations and rights.

Palestinians are the prime example with the horrors of the 15-month-old Gaza war and a history of denial of an internationally recognised right to a national existence of their own.

In Syria, it’s not Palestinian aspirations that are at stake.

It’s Kurdish aspirations in the north, imperiled by Turkey, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, Syria’s rebels-turned-governors, and the United States, and the rights of Syrian nationals in the southeast as Israeli troops expand their Syrian footprint by taking over villages in or near the occupied Golan Heights.

Both Kurds and Syrians in Israeli-occupied territories feel abandoned, albeit for different reasons.

Please read further, listen to the podcast, or watch the video at https://jamesmdorsey.substack.com/p/a-tale-of-three-occupations

By James M. Dorsey

is a senior fellow at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies as Nanyang Technological University in Singapore, co-director of the Institute of Fan Culture of the University of Würzburg and the author of the blog, The Turbulent World of Middle East Soccer, and a forthcoming book with the same title.