After coming under fire for proposing an all-male cabinet, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on Wednesday appointed two women as vice presidents and one as a civil rights assistant, BBC reported. Iran has 12 vice presidents who run various organisations that are linked to the presidency.
Massoumeh Ebtekar was named the vice president for family and women’s affairs, while Laya Joneidi was made the vice president for legal affairs. Shahindokht Mowlaverdi was appointed the president’s assistant for civil rights.
Ebtekar is known for her role as spokesperson during the United States Embassy hostage crisis in Iran in 1980. She handled the environment portfolio in Rouhani’s previous government.
Rouhani began his second term as the president on August 3 after winning the presidential elections by a huge margin in May this year. On August 8, he had submitted a list of lawmakers he proposed to appoint in his cabinet to Parliament for approval.
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