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.
Get The Times of Israel's Daily Editionby email and never miss our top stories
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.
Advertisement
Help us report truthfully on social media
As a multimedia journalist, my job is to take the quality, fact-based journalism produced by The Times of Israel newsroom and make it accessible across every platform — from Instagram posts to podcasts to short-form videos.
This is how many, especially young people, consume news these days. But misinformation is rampant on social media. Our team at ToI produces accurate, responsible short-form reporting on Israel and the Jewish world.
If you believe in the importance of factual social media journalism, please consider joining our reader support group, The Times of Israel Community. Your financial support is essential to sustain responsible multimedia reporting.
We’re really pleased that you’ve read X Times of Israel articles in the past month.
That’s why we started the Times of Israel - to provide discerning readers like you with must-read coverage of Israel and the Jewish world.
So now we have a request. Unlike other news outlets, we haven’t put up a paywall. But as the journalism we do is costly, we invite readers for whom The Times of Israel has become important to help support our work by joining The Times of Israel Community.
For as little as $6 a month you can help support our quality journalism while enjoying The Times of Israel AD-FREE, as well as accessing exclusive content available only to Times of Israel Community members.
Thank you, David Horovitz, Founding Editor of The Times of Israel
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on Google
