Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian has appointed Arash Zerehtan, a Sunni Muslim, as the governor of Kurdistan province, the first Sunni to hold such a position since 1979. Zerehtan previously served as a member of parliament for Paveh. The appointment highlights Pezeshkian's commitment to improving minority representation in Iran.
Iran's new president, Masoud Pezeshkian, has appointed Arash Zerehtan, a member of the Sunni Muslim minority, as governor of Kurdistan province.
This is the first time since the 1979 Islamic Revolution that a Sunni has been made a regional governor in Iran, a predominantly Shiite country.
Zerehtan, 48, previously served as a member of parliament for the city of Paveh from 2020 to this year.
Iran, where Shiite Islam is the state religion, has a Sunni population that comprises about 10 percent of the country's total demographic.
President Pezeshkian, who took office in July following the death of President Ebrahim Raisi, has emphasized the need for better representation of ethnic and religious minorities.
This marks another significant appointment after Abdolkarim Hosseinzadeh, another Sunni, was made one of Pezeshkian's vice presidents in August.