TEHRAN — Less than two months after the astonishing victory of Hassan Rouhani in Iran’s 11th presidential election, it appears that the honeymoon period of the president-elect, who will officially become president on Aug. 3, is over. His picks for the cabinet have created a new controversy in the Iranian political arena.
Although the media outlets close to both Reformist and Principalist factions in Iran have made a lot of predictions about Rouhani’s cabinet, it appears that at least the choice for one of the ministries has been finalized. This is the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance, which is incidentally one of the most controversial ministries for both political factions as well as social forces demanding change in Iran.