Kurd re-elected for third term in regional parliament in Russia

Zoroyê Rostem, a member of United Russia, Russia’s ruling political party, was elected for a third time on Sunday to the Legislative Assembly of Krasnodar Province located in Southern Russia.

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – Zoroyê Rostem, a member of United Russia, Russia’s ruling political party, was elected for a third time on Sunday to the Legislative Assembly of Krasnodar Province located in Southern Russia.

Rostem was elected as a member of the Krasnodar parliament in 2010. He was re-elected to parliament in 2015. On Sunday, he was re-elected for the third time as a member of the Krasnodar local parliament.

Rostem was born on Oct. 14, 1972, in the village of Heko in Armenia. He has a degree in economics. Moreover, he is a member of Russia’s ruling United Russia party, and a member of the same party in the Krasnodar Parliament.

According to a 2010 census, over 60,000 Kurds live in Russia with the majority of them living in the Krasnodar province.

A Minority Rights International report suggests that around 30,000 Kurds live in the Krasnodar province.

Historically, Kurds moved to Russia from Turkey and, after the collapse of the Soviet Union, from Armenia and Azerbaijan during the conflict over Nagorny-Karabakh in the 1990s.

Eighteen thousand Muslim Kurds in Armenia were expelled along with the Azeris living in Armenia. Two thousand Kurds in Azerbaijan also felt compelled to flee to avoid harassment or forced conscription. Most of these refugees went to the Krasnodar province.

Furthermore, several thousand Kurds fled to the Krasnodar province from Kirghizia during the period of instability following the end of the Soviet Union.

Editing by Karzan Sulaivany