Our seven maps below illustrate how Syria became a country and the forces that have made it so unstable.

This story appears in the March 2014 issue of National Geographic ... of 2013, Syria’s bloody and complex civil war had displaced some nine million men, women, and children (view map).

Ancient City Defied Rome, Now Faces Threat of Islamic State Ancient City Defied Rome, Now Faces Threat of Islamic State Ancient City Defied Rome, Now Faces Threat of Islamic State Read How Former ...