Syrian refugee numbers understate the immensity of the dislocation that has already occurred

Over 300,000 Syrians are refugees outside of their country, in addition to large numbers in Jordan, Iraq, Turkey and Lebanon, there are sizable numbers of better-off Syrians in the Gulf, esp. in the UAE.  What we are lacking are reliable estimates of internal refugees.  As a benchmark, it should be kept in mind that internally displaced persons and external refugees in Iraq (c. 2006-7) reached one seventh of the population of the total population (approx. 28m. vs. 23 m. in Syria) of Iraq, of whom about sixty percent were internally displaced.  That is a reminder that for every one of the 300,000 Syrians who have probably fled their country, there are probably another 300,000 or so who have sought shelter in Syrian villages and towns.  In other words, when considering the numbers of refugees, one should probably assume that the reported numbers are only a fraction of the human dislocation that has occurred to date.

The empty Golan

Realism must rule in engaging Syria - The Boston Globe

There is not much new here except the revelation that there is not "an occupied population" on the Golan Heights. The author served for six years as an IDF artillery officer and was involved as an advisor with Gov. Bill Richardson's campaign for president.

For the record, there are about 18,000 Druze living in four villages. Some of them, about ten percent, have accepted Israeli citizenship, while the remainder are Syrian citizens. There are also less than 1,000 non-Druze Muslims, mostly Arabs but also some "Gypsies" in Ghajjar.

Israeli colonists number less than 18,000 according to 2004 data, and they live in 32 settlements.