Iran set to appoint first female ambassador since 1979's Islamic revolution

Marzieh Afkham is about to make history.
Afkham is set to become the head of a mission in East Asia, according to Iran's state news agency. The country Afkham will be assigned to has not been revealed, since her appointment isn't official yet.
But wherever Afkham is posted, she will be Iran's first female ambassador since the Islamic revolution in 1979, and she'll only be Iran's second female ambassador ever. (In 1976, Mehrangiz Dolatshahi became an Iranian ambassador to Denmark.)
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This won't be the first time Afkham has set a new record for women's equality — she's already the first woman to serve as the spokesperson for Iran's foreign minister. Mohammad Javad Zarif appointed her as his spokeswoman in 2013. Hassan Rouhani, Iran's president, has said that it is his government's responsibility to "create equal opportunities for women."
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Meghan DeMaria is a staff writer at TheWeek.com. She has previously worked for USA Today and Marie Claire.
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