ABSTRACT
The departure of French troops from Syria in 1946 opened the way to a period of social, economic, and political upheaval, which would continue unchecked for nearly two decades. Certain of these upheavals (e.g. political radicalization, expansion of the education system, the agricultural development in Jazira, etc.) originated during the mandatory period or near the end of the Ottoman Empire (e.g. the settling of nomadic populations and the emergence of “middle-class” urbanites). Others, such as military dictatorships and the Arab-Israeli conflict, were the products of regional and new internal dynamics. The Kurds, like the other populations present in the country, played a role in these changes.
