By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
Iran's hard-line government named for the first time a cleric to head this country's oldest university in Tehran amid noisy protests Sunday by students over the appointment, state media reported.
Abbasali Amid Zanjani, 58, was appointed chancellor of Tehran University by Mohammad Mehdi Zahedi, Iran's higher education minister, state-run TV reported.
The appointment follows a campaign promise by new hard-line Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad for a more Islamic-oriented approach to his administration. Ahmadinejad came to office in August.
Zanjani, who taught in the university's law school and is a specialist in Islamic law, succeeded Reza Faraji Dana, who was chosen by university members during former reformist President Mohammad Khatami's administration.