In this chapter, Darius is called the king of Assyria. In reality, Darius was also king of Persia. Persia had conquered Babylon, which had previously conquered Assyria. It was unusual to refer to Darius as the king of Assyria. Ezra may have referred to him in this way to contrast Darius' actions with those of the former rulers of Assyria, who had treated the Jews very cruelly. It was those rulers who had conquered the northern tribes of Israel and deported them to other lands. It was for this reasons that the northern tribes lost their identity and were no longer a distinct people group.
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