This file photo taken on April 3, 2015 shows Hossein Fereydoun, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani's younger brother and adviser, at a press conference in Tehran. (AFP Photo/Atta Kenare)
TEHRAN — An Iranian court has reduced the jail sentence against President Hassan Rouhani’s brother to five years on charges of corruption, a judiciary spokesman said Tuesday.
“Regarding the case of Hossein Fereydoun, the sentence of seven years handed down by the court of first instance has been reduced to five years,” Gholamhossein Esmaili told a press conference.
Esmaili said the sentence was final as there was no further avenue of appeal.
Fereydoun was also ordered to pay a fine and to pay back the bribes he was alleged to have received, the spokesman said without giving any figures.
President Hassan Rouhani speaks in a cabinet meeting in Tehran, Iran, July 3, 2019. (Iranian Presidency Office via AP)
Fereydoun acted as a key adviser and gatekeeper to the president before his arrest in July 2017. He was closely involved with the negotiations with world powers that led to the 2015 nuclear accord that now appears to be falling apart.
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The brothers do not share the same name because Rouhani changed his when he was younger to a word meaning “cleric.”
Fereydoun’s trial opened in February. Very few details have emerged in the Iranian press.
Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.
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