Turkey took over, and pressured non-Turks who would not accept Turkish citizenship to leave. Syria has never recognized the incorporation of the Hatay into Turkey. There is still an Arabic-speaking population in the region, though Turks are now the solid majority. Syria does not actively press the claim, and in fact during the recent crisis, Turkish President S leyman Demirel explicitly warned Damascus not to raise the Hatay issue. On the other hand, Syrian maps frequently show the entire region as part of Syria.
Turkey regularly protests the publication of such maps.
Though the claim is latent, it has never been renounced by Syria, which holds that France had no right to cede the territory to Turkey under the mandate. When other issues arise between Turkey and Syria, the old quarrel over the Hatay is likely to be resurrected, as Demirel obviously feared might occur this time. Inc. No part of this web site, including its graphics, written content or any other material may be reprinted without the written permission of The International Estimate, Inc.