The al-Ahwaz theater was one of two major areas of operations during the Zanj Rebellion, the other being the regions of lower and central Iraq. Beginning in 869, Zanj armies repeatedly entered the province of al-Ahwaz (modern Khuzestan Province, Iran) and succeeded in scoring several victories against the defending forces of the Abbasid Caliphate. Over the course of the next decade, the rebels attacked and looted many of the cities in the region, including Suq al-Ahwaz (the provincial capital), 'Askar Mukram and Ramhurmuz. By the height of the rebellion in the mid-870s the Zanj were effectively in control of extensive portions of the province, appointing governors to the districts under their sway and collecting supplies from the local population. During this period, the Zanj in al-Ahwaz w