Iran militias replace ancient Syria street names with Shia figures

Iranian militias in Syria have been changing the names of ancient streets within the country with names of Iranian Shia leaders, according to the UK-based Syrian Observatory of Human Rights (SOHR).

Citing sources from the city of Al-Mayadeen in Syria’s eastern province of Deir Ez-Zor, SOHR reported that the Iranian militias present in the country have been replacing the old names of streets with new names in both Arabic and Persian.

Some examples of the name changes include ‘Anas Bin Malik’ Street being turned into ‘Imam Al-Khamini’ Street, and ‘Al-Jaish’ Street becoming ‘Imam Al-Abbas’ Street, referring to the ‘Al-Abbas Brigade’ militia operating in the city.

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Other examples include ‘Abu Grub’ Street becoming ‘Marty Qassem Soleimani’ Street after the assassinated Iranian commander, and ‘Al-Sakiat al-Rai’ Street becoming ‘Fatimiyoun’ Street.

The revelation of the Iranian militias’ changes of ancient Syrian street names also comes amid reports of clashes between the Syrian regime and some Iranian militias, as regime forces attacked some of their positions in Deir Ez-Zor province and captured an oil field from one of the militias.

Such clashes come as a surprise to many, as the Iranian militias were a core part of the Syrian regime’s fight against the Syrian opposition throughout the ongoing nine-year-long conflict, and potentially signals the breakdown in relations between the Assad regime and the Iran-backed forces.

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