"Streetart" in the sense of using techniques like stencils and fonts known from US HipHop culture slowly began to appear in Damascus around 2005. However, a stencil portrait of Ararafat seems to be a rare find. It might be connected to the 2006 Lebanon war that gave a boost to political messages in public space.
While streetart is a rather new phenomenon, writing on walls has a long history in the Damascene communication system.