There is a big difference between sovereignty in law and in reality. In theory, international law requires that a sovereign state effectively control its territory. In practice, many "states" are recognized that have no such effective control, while many states that do control territory go unrecognized. Put another way, the law defines a state by recognition by other states, whereas political science defines it as any entity having an actual, effective monopoly on violence within a particular area. As a political fact, there has been no state of Syria since 2011, and no state of Lebanon since the seventies.
There is a big difference between sovereignty in law and in reality. In theory, international law requires that a sovereign state effectively control its territory. In practice, many "states" are recognized that have no such effective control, while many states that do control territory go unrecognized. Put another way, the law defines a state by recognition by other states, whereas political science defines it as any entity having an actual, effective monopoly on violence within a particular area. As a political fact, there has been no state of Syria since 2011, and no state of Lebanon since the seventies.