Historical roots of contemporary conflicts in the Levant region

The Levant refers to the eastern Mediterranean region consisting of modern-day Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Israel/Palestine, and parts of Iraq and Turkey.

- PROF. JAWAID IQBAL

In the contemporary world order, the Levant is in turmoil. The genocide in Gaza has led to the explosive entry of Palestine on the scene of global politics, highlighting the settler-colonial character of Zionism and questioning the moral legitimacy of Israel. The Lebanese Shia political party and paramilitary group carried out a 14-month-long conflict with Israel to pressure it into ending the killings in Gaza. In Syria, Bashar al-Assad, the country's president since 2000, was toppled by the Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) in December 2024. Given these rapid developments in the Levant, it is essential to look into its history.

OTTOMAN RULE

For over 400 years, from 1516 to 1918, the Levant was governed by the Ottoman empire. The Ottoman system was characterized by adaptability: 1) it gave a degree of political autonomy to local notables; and 2) due to Islamic principles of toleration and realistic assessments of feasibility, it allowed the non-Muslim subjects to preserve their religious customs, educational structures, and community leadership.

The Ottoman system soon suffered a decline due to its inability to confront the West. Under Ottoman rule, surplus agricultural product was either shipped to the capital or appropriated by the local notables. No organized attempt was made to use this output for productive investments. As a result, manufacturing continued to stagnate in the stage of small-scale artisanal and handicraft production, without industrialization.

When European trade reached the eastern Mediterranean, the local, smallscale Ottoman industry, encountering increasing costs and rigid price regulation, found itself incapable of competing with the cheap manufactured goods of Europe. This economic unevenness made the Ottoman empire dependent on European countries, laying the ground for its eventual collapse.

FRANCO-BRITISH IMPERIALISM