Snipers in Syria shoot at UN chemical inspectors: UN

[happyslug]

18. Iranian Mercenaries????

Given that the Iranian Army is a draftee army, with popular support, I doubt these are MERCENARIES (people HIRED to be soldiers) but either volunteers who want to help the Syrian Government, or actual troops of Iran. In either case NOT mercenaries.

Iran is a fairly tightly run country. It has been so for the last 2500 years. The extent of the Country has varied over that 2500 year period, but most Iranians, see themselves as Iranian.

Now, Iranians also see what is called "Greater Iran" or "Greater Persia" (if you want to use the old name for Iran). This include areas with a large number of speakers if Iranian or closely related languages. Please note, Nationalism is a recent introduction into this area, unheard of prior to 1800. Religion and language was more important then nationality prior to at least 1800 and to a good extent to this day.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greater_Iran

This also includes most of the people living on what is called the Iranian Plateau, an area more united then divided over the last 2500 years.

The extant extent of "Greater Iran" is open to debate, but in most people's idea, Syria East of the Anti-Lebanon Mountains is in Greater Iran, while Syria along the Mediterranean coast is not (Through that coast is considered Iran's outlet to the Mediterranean sea and thus important to them, this can be seen when during the Crusade this area opened up trade that bypassed Constantinople, in many ways that trade route was the death call of the Byzantine Empire, for once Constantinople lost control of the East-West trade route, it went into terminal decline).

Sorry, this is within traditional areas of Persian/Iranian rule and/or area of concern (The Roman Empire destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD was more to make a point to Persia that Rome would control the Mediterranean coast and Persia should stay in the Mesopotamian valley and out of both Palestine AND Syria, through both countries would fight over where the exact border was over the next 500 years, till the time of the Arab Conquest, which push both Empires out of Syria, both Empires had fought a nasty war that weakened both, when for the only time in History Arabia was united and this opened up the area for Conquest).

After the Arab Conquest, Iran was subdued, but it slowly became the main power behind Islamic Rule, as Islam replaced Zoroastrianism as the main Religion of Iran. The Turks skipped over Iran, but retain part of the tradition of being part of Greater Iran, till the Ottomans took over and allied themselves with the Greeks and by thus by 1300 had replaced the Greek Empire as the main opponent to Persia. The Mongol Conquest put both Empires into crisis, but once the Mongols retreated back to Mongolia (and was replaced by Russia in the Steeps of Russia) Persia and Turkey ended up doing what Roman and Persia had done a 1000 years before, have a border alone the Anti-Lebanon mountains, with temporary changes ever so many years. Sometime Turkey would have Baghdad and Mesopotamia, other times Persia. Barsa, being Arab but Pro-Persia embraced Shiite Islam along with Persia while Baghdad and West embraced Sunni Islam and Turkey. There is a lot of overlap between these two groups, depending on who the local look at for assistance.