SAYYIDA ZAYNAB, Syria (North Press) – The town of Sayyida Zaynab in Syria’s Rif Dimashq region suffers from a lack of services. The Syrian government cares only about police stations and public institutions, which has allowed Iranian institutions to carry out service projects since the beginning of the Syrian war.
Sayyida Zaynab is an important site for religious tourism in Syria, and tens of thousands of mostly Iranian and Iraqi Shi’ite Muslim pilgrims visit every year.
The absence of services
Abduljawad Saleh Qerqmash, a resident of the town’s Fatmia neighbourhood, said “Government institutions have been completely out of service since the beginning of the Syrian crisis.”
Qerqmash added that ”Residents of the district fix any electricity or water network malfunction.”
He pointed out that government institutions were re-activated after the armed opposition groups exit from Ghouta in 2018, and that ”the Syrian government pledged to rehabilitate the area and reconstruct it as a destination for religious tourism.”
Government vacuum
Although there are some urban projects in Sayyida Zaynab, the government continues to neglect the area, according to residents.
Due to the weak role of government facilities, Iranian institutions took advantage of the power vacuum, worked hard to provide the necessary services in the area, and tried to impose a cultural and ideological agenda, according to observers.
Iran is accused of recruiting Syrian Shi’ites into militias that enhance its military influence, while opposition groups accuse Iran of the spread of sectarian rhetoric and carrying out a Shi’ite campaign in Syria.
Iranian alternative
Husin Kanaan, a resident in Iraqia roundabout district, told North Press that the Iranian Jihad Binaa institution “has recently started rehabilitating roads as well as lighting streets and service facilities; it fulfilled what the government failed to do.”
Last year the institution organized public parks and roadways leading to the shrine of Sayyida Zainab, in addition to laying high-tension lines and repairing sanitation networks, according to Kanan.
Government approval
Thaer Muhammad, an engineer and an official in Jihad Binaa, told North Press that they achieved a series of vital projects to improve service conditions with the approval of the Syrian government.
He added that Jihad Binaa “aims to improve the service situation in Sayyida Zaynab and reconstruct it as it was before: a destination for religious tourism in Syria.”
North Press previously documented residents of the Shi’ite Nubl and Zahraa towns in the countryside of Aleppo talking about Shi’ite campaigns and Iranian culture in the region.
Sayyida Zainab town has the most important cultural and military centers for Iranian militias and Hezbollah, which is the main pillar of these forces and the starting point for their operations in southern Syria and Ghouta.