Iranian actor Maziar Lorestani comes out as transgender man

A well-known Iranian actor has come out as a transgender man, to mixed reception on social media.

The 56-year-old actor said in a voice recording last week that he would now be going by the name Maziar Lorestani - though his Instagram username also includes his former first name, Shohreh.

Lorestani, who lives and works in Iran said that he is now "customarily and legally" a man.

"I hope I can continue my work as an artist with my new identity," Lorestani said.

Lorestani began acting in the 1980s, featuring in television, film and theatre productions. He has close to half a million followers on Instagram.

Though Lorestani's coming out was met by some social users with anti-trans comments, others congratulated him on becoming "his true self".

Though Iran is notorious for its treatment of LGBTQ+ people as a whole - with homosexuality punishable by death - it is the only country in the Gulf region to legally recognise transgender individuals' gender identity.

The Iranian state also subsidises gender reassignment surgery.

However, transgender people in Iran still face widespread legal and social discrimination.