Beginning in 2012, Iran aided Bashar al-Assad in organizing Shiite militias to fight alongside the Syrian army. Soon thereafter, with help from the terror group Hizballah and its Iraqi offshoot, Tehran started to organize these militias as a third, Syrian branch of Hizballah itself. Phillip Smyth writes:
As the war in Syria drags on, the country’s Shiite armed groups are here to stay. Through them, Iran is continuing to strengthen its foothold in the Levant and among a Shiite population.
The reorientation of Syria’s pro-Assad Shiite armed groups toward Iran also marks a significant change. Historically, Syria was home to many competing ideological forms of Shiism. In a March 2013 Los Angeles Times article, a Syrian Shiite refugee and militiaman in Lebanon remarked, “My loyalty is with Hizballah, but I am not controlled by them.” Three years later, the situation is strikingly different. The Hizballah-zation of these groups, in name, structure, and allegiance, signifies a major accomplishment for Tehran, allowing Iran to preserve [greater direct] influence and more effectively project power within Syria.
Read more on Washington Institute: http://www.washingtoninstitute.org/policy-analysis/view/27756