What's the History of Iraq and Syria?

World War one ended in the well, when did it end? Late 1910s. It started in 1914 and ended around 1920. The Western powers destroyed the Ottoman Empire which was anyway crumbling. Why did the British want this big piece of territory for themselves? They wanted this as a vessel state as a buffer state for two purposes. This region is rich in oil and the British wanted the oil, just like the Americans do today.