Happy Nowruz to those who are celebrating!
TODAY IN HISTORY
March 20, 1602: The States General of the Netherlands amalgamates several trading companies to form the Dutch East India Company (VOC). Modeled on the East India Company formed by the English monarchy two years earlier, the Dutch firm was intended to reduce the risk of overseas trade by controlling the supply of imported goods and thus minimizing price volatility. Political upheaval and financial struggles caused the Dutch government to allow its charter to lapse in 1799. Because of its structure the VOC is sometimes referred to as the world’s first “multinational corporation.” It’s also remembered as excessively brutal and exploitative even within the European colonial context.
March 20, 1815: Having escaped exile on the island of Elba, Napoleon makes his triumphant return to Paris as emperor, beginning the “100 days” epilogue to his reign. He would abdicate again on June 22, after losing the Battle of Waterloo and realizing on his return to Paris that there was little public appetite to resist the coalition forces that were marching on the city.
MIDDLE EAST
SYRIA
The Israeli military (IDF) somehow found time in its busy schedule to bomb Syria overnight, striking military outposts after reports of fighting between Syrian security forces and Druze militias in Suwayda province. I haven’t seen any reports of casualties as yet. According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights the fighting began with an apparent mortar attack by government forces on militia-controlled parts of the province. The Israeli government has appointed itself protector of Syria’s Druze community and continues to demand that Damascus create a demilitarized zone in southern Syria.
