Map courtesy of Devlet Arşivleri Başkanlığı Osmanlı Arşivi.Aerial view of Deir ez-Zor, 1934, by the French 39th Artillery Regiment. Source: IFPO.Mardin, Turkey, looking south toward the Jazira. Photo courtesy of Chris Gratien. MER Article The Jazira’s Long Shadow over Turkey and Syria In September of 2019, Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan called for the United Nations to establish a security zone in northern Syria east of the Euphrates. If the line extended south to Raqqa and Deir ez-Zor, he suggested, some 3 million Syrian refugees could be resettled not only from Turkey Samuel Dolbee • 14 min read