United Nations

Nanguyalai S. Tarzi Appointed Director of UN Information Centre in Tehran

NEW YORK, 28 December (UN Headquarters) -- Secretary-General Kofi Annan has appointed Nanguyalai S. Tarzi as Director of the United Nations Information Centre in Tehran, Iran. Mr. Tarzi, who succeeds Iftikhar Ali, will assume his duties on 2 January 2001.

Since November 1992, Mr. Tarzi has served as Ambassador and Permanent Observer of the Organization of the Islamic Conference to the United Nations Office and other international organizations at Geneva. For the past three years, he also served in a similar capacity to the United Nations Office at Vienna.

From November 1979 to September 1986, Mr. Tarzi was Political Adviser and then, from September 1986 to November 1992, the Deputy Permanent Observer of the Organization of the Islamic Conference to United Nations Headquarters, New York.

Mr. Tarzi's international career began in 1970 with three years as a member of the Department of Information, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Kabul, Afghanistan. He then served as Second Secretary at the Embassy of Afghanistan in

Washington, D.C., from December 1973 to September 1977, whereupon he became Chief of the Department of International Financial and Economic Relations, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Kabul. From 1964 to 1970, Mr. Tarzi taught international law and international relations at the University of Law and Political Science in Kabul.

Born in Kabul, Mr. Tarzi studied law and diplomatic relations at the University of Law and Political Science there, and international public law at the Faculte de Droit et Sciences Economiques de Paris. He obtained a doctorate in international law from the Sorbonne, Paris. He is married and has two children.