TEHRAN, Iran — Iran’s information minister apologizes today for posting a photo on Twitter of what appeared to be a Halloween-type costume representing a spacesuit, in an effort to promote the idea of a manned space program for his country.
The official IRNA news agency quotes Mohammad Javad Azari Jahromi, Iran’s information and communications technology minister, as saying his department’s advertising team “undeniably made a mistake in choosing the image” and expressed his apologies to “the people and space scientists” of Iran.
The photo, posted on Jahromi’s Twitter account and depicting what looks like costume of a spacesuit with an Iranian flag sowed on the front, caused a stir on social media, with many Iranians turning to sarcasm and commenting about the fake spacesuit. After his apology, Jahromi removes the photo from his account.
The timing of the minister’s faux pas is also unfortunate. An Iranian rocket failed to put a satellite into orbit on Sunday, the latest setback for a program the US claims helps Tehran advance its ballistic missile program.
The attempted launch followed two failed launches last year, of the Payam and Doosti satellites, as well as a launchpad rocket explosion in August. Also, a fire at the Imam Khomeini Space Center in February 2019 killed three researchers, authorities said at the time.
— AP
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.
— Gabriella Jacobs, multimedia journalist
Support our work
Support our work
Already a member? Sign in to stop seeing this
You're a dedicated reader
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
Join Our Community
Join Our Community
Already a member? Sign in to stop seeing this
From 
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on Google
