A historic first: Pezeshkian appoints Kurdish Sunni governor of Iran's Kurdistan province

Shafaq News/ On Wednesday, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian announced the appointment of Arash Zerehtan as the governor of Kurdistan province in western Iran, making him the first Kurdish Sunni to hold this position in the country.

The new governor's appointment is part of the government's efforts to fulfill its promises of strengthening national unity and solidarity, regardless of ethnicity, sect, or race, according to the Arabic website of the Islamic Republic of Iran.

Dr. Zerehtan, a member of the Islamic Consultative Assembly representing the city of Marivan, who holds a Ph.D. in international economics and has served as a member of parliament in the 11th term, will replace the current governor, Esmail Zarei Koosha, following a proposal from the Minister of Interior and approval by the Cabinet. He also previously worked as the executive director of the Red Crescent Society in Kurdistan province.

Notably, the Sunni community in Iran is the second largest after the Shiite one, representing the largest religious minority in the country. Statistics indicate that Sunnis make up between 8-10% of the population, with some reports estimating the figure to be 20% of the total population of approximately 90 million people.

Most Sunnis are concentrated in Sistan and Balochistan in southeastern Iran, and in Kurdistan province in the west, bordering Iraq's Kurdistan Region.