This writer gives us some idea of how casually early 20th century British and French imperialists divided up the Middle East to serve their ruling class geopolitical interests.
One hundred years ago today, Britain and France drew a line through the Middle East that became the border between Syria and Iraq, with a kink at the end of it that became Israel. You get a sense of the breezy confidence behind the so-called Sykes-Picot agreement from the minutes of the cabinet where the idea was hatched: