Syrian president appoints Netflix star Rozina Lazkani to new parliament

Syria’s president has picked a popular Arab TV actress for the country’s new transitional parliament.

Actress Rozina Lazkani, 36, was selected as one of President Ahmed al-Sharaa’s 70 appointees to the 210-seat People’s Assembly, the Syrian Arab News Agency reported.

Lazkani — a star on the popular drama Al-Hayba, which streams on Netflix — said she was grateful for the opportunity to take part in the country’s new government after the fall of Bashar al-Assad in 2024.

“The best thing that can be bestowed on humans is confidence, and I have been honored by His Excellency the President of the Syrian Arab Republic by giving me confidence, and this confidence will not be a passing event in my journey and my humble experience,” the actress wrote on Instagram.

“I promise all who tend to have a good faith that I will take up the task with the highest levels of seriousness and responsibility in the service of my countrymen, hoping that we will build a new Syria as befits it,” she added.

Lazkani’s appointment is notable since the actress, who made her television debut in 2014, does not have any previous government experience or notable actions taken during the 2024 revolution.

She has about 690,000 followers on Instagram, where she posts about Syrian politics in between glam shots of herself.

Despite her inexperience, she’ll stand aside Sharaa’s other appointees, like Aisha al-Dibs, the head of the Women’s Affairs Office in the country’s Political Affairs Administration.

Other appointees include relatives of civil war victims, former prisoners and survivors of chemical attacks under Assad’s regime, officials said.

Mohammad Taha al-Ahmad, chairman of the Higher Committee for People’s Assembly Elections, said Sharaa’s appointments are meant to draw from all corners and Syria and ensure that parliament has a mix of expertise and professional experience, SANA reported.

Sharaa, who rose to prominence after helping lead Assad’s ouster, made it a point to use his 70 appointments to bring in a mix of voices that will determine Syria’s future.

The committee noted that 15 of the 70 presidential appointees were women, more than the six female candidates chosen by the country’s electoral college to sit in parliament.

That brings the total number of women in the People’s Assembly to 21, a notable boost following last year’s attempted selection process that saw only six women get approved.

Syrian rights organizations, however, say the make up falls far short of the needed representation for women in the country, as well as minority groups.

With Post Wires