9781422275795

Syria. Though the FSA is nominally a secular alliance of anti-As- sad militaries and militias , it has drawn in (and perhaps even been surpassed by) fundamentalist Sunni organizations like the al-Nusra Front.

Syrian Geography Syria is primarily a desert, like much of the Middle East, sepa- rated from rainfall due to wind currents and the syrian coastal moun- tain range. The western region is habitable and fertile, and much of this region is devoted to cropland and grazing spaces for agriculture. About 30 to 40 inches of rainfall per year in this region makes it a striking contrast from the arid and desert climates of the eastern regions. The Euphrates River is a major geographic feature of Syria (and the broader Middle East itself), fed from the mountains of Turkey and flowing through Syria and Iraq before reaching the Persian Gulf, providing about 80 percent of the total freshwater resources in Syria. Syria is divided into 14 different districts called “governorates.” The highest point in the country is Mount Harmon, which is 9,232 feet (2,814 m) above sea level. A major player in the war, ISIS has not had any international support and, indeed, has been the most frequent target of inter- national attacks. ISIS established its own independent country in the regions of eastern Syria and northern Iraq, vowing to declare a caliphate (an Islamic government) based onultra-traditionalMuslim ideologies, believing themselves to be the leader of global Islamic revolution and authority. Of all the atrocities committed during the Syrian war, ISIS has committed the most grisly of them, earning a reputation for brutality and making the caliphate an international target. ISIS has been almost totally defeated in Syria today, with fewer than 1,000 soldiers likely remaining in the country, but it has shifted its attention to newwar zones in theMiddle East andAfrica, hoping to reestablish its caliphate and attract new volunteers to wage its jihad holy war.

Introduction

13