Confirmation hearings were held for cabinet positions in the government of Hassan Rouhani, Iran's new president. Most of Rouhani’s nominees were confirmed.  Mohammad Javad Zarif, a former ambassador to the United Nations who has spent much of his life in the United States, was appointed as foreign minister.  Mahmoud Alavi was confirmed as minister of intelligence, while Mohammad Reza Nematzadeh was appointed as minister of industry and mines.  The nominees for the ministries of education, science, and sports were rejected after accusations that they had ties to the 2009 "Green Movement."