"France is having trouble with the administration of her mandatory in Syria ... States mandate and the third choice was for the British. Almost to a man the population opposed the French mandate.

Donald Trump's proposal to "take over" Gaza and relocate its population has raised concerns about potential regional ...

But the territory remained under the French. Lebanon was carved off Syria but remained a French mandate, while Alexandretta in the northwest became part of the newly independent country of Turkey.

The French military bombed positions of the Islamic State (ISIS) in Syria on Tuesday (Dec 31), the first such strike in the West Asian country since the fall of Bashar al-Assad's government.