Mohammad-Javad Azari Jahromi

{{Short description|Iranian politician and former intelligence officer}}

{{Infobox officeholder

| name = Mohammad-Javad Azari Jahromi

| image = Azari Jahromi 2019 (cropped).jpg

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| office = Minister of Information and Communications Technology

| term_start = 20 August 2017

| term_end = 25 August 2021

| president = Hassan Rouhani

| predecessor = Mahmoud Vaezi

| successor = Issa Zarepour

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| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1981|9|16|df=y}}{{citation|url=https://www.treasury.gov/resource-center/sanctions/OFAC-Enforcement/Pages/20191122.aspx|title=Iran-related Designation|date=22 November 2019|access-date=22 November 2019|work=United States Department of the Treasury}}

| birth_place = Jahrom, Fars province, Iran

| nationality = Iranian

| alma_mater = Power and Water University of Technology{{citation|url=http://www.tehrantimes.com/news/415767/|title=Hassan Rouhani's cabinet is complete. Here's the full list|date=8 August 2017|access-date=8 August 2017|work=Tehran Times}}

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| children = 4

| signature = Mohammad-Javad Azari Jahromi signature.svg

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Mohammad-Javad Azari Jahromi ({{langx|fa|محمدجواد آذری جهرمی}}; born 16 September 1982) is an Iranian politician and former intelligence officer{{Citation|first1=Rebecca|last1=Barlow|first2=Shahram|last2=Akbarzadeh| title=Human Rights and Agents of Change in Iran: Towards a Theory of Change|publisher=Springer|isbn=978-9811088247|page=43|year=2018}} who served as the Minister of Information and Communications Technology in the administration of President Hassan Rouhani from 2017 to 2021.

He gained vote of confidence from the parliament on 20 August 2017, with 152 yeas, 120 nays, 7 abstentions and 9 invalid votes.{{citation|url=http://ifpnews.com/exclusive/almost-ministers-proposed-rouhani-receive-vote-confidence/|title=Almost All Ministers Proposed by Rouhani Receive Vote of Confidence|date=20 August 2017|access-date=20 August 2017|work=Iran Front Page}}

He was the youngest member of the cabinet of Iran, as well as the first Iranian minister born after the Iranian revolution.{{citation|url=https://financialtribune.com/articles/economy-sci-tech/70387/proposed-ict-minister-promises-more-better-internet|title=Proposed ICT Minister Promises More, Better Internet|date=16 August 2017|access-date=20 August 2017|work=Financial Tribune}}

Early life and education

Azari Jahromi was born in Jahrom, Fars province and was raised in a poor family. During the Iran-Iraq War, his 16-year-old brother was killed.{{Cite web|last=Faghihi|first=Rohollah|date=25 October 2019|title=Is Iran's Information Minister the Islamic Republic's Emmanuel Macron?|url=https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/10/25/iran-information-minister-mohammad-javad-azari-jahromi-islamic-republic/|access-date=28 January 2021|website=Foreign Policy}} He studied electrical engineering at the Power and Water University of Technology, where he met his future wife.

Career

Azari Jahromi worked at the Ministry of Intelligence from 2002 to 2009, where he for some time held managerial positions and was involved in crackdown of 2009 election protests. From 2009 to 2014, he served as general manager of the communications systems security department at the Communication Regulatory Authority. He then became ex-officio vice minister of information and communications technology, in his capacity as the chairman of Telecommunications Infrastructure Company. Jahrami was also a non-executive member of the board of directors at RighTel between 2014 and 2016.

In November 2019, the U.S. Treasury Department sanctioned Azari "for his role in the Iranian regime’s widescale internet censorship," freezing any of his U.S. assets and banning U.S. persons from doing business with him.{{Cite web|url=https://home.treasury.gov/news/press-releases/sm836|title=Treasury Designates Iran's Minister of Information and Communications Technology in View of the Regime's Repressive Internet Censorship {{!}} U.S. Department of the Treasury|website=home.treasury.gov|access-date=2019-12-03}}

Meeting with an Iranian hacker

File:Meeting between Mohammad-Javad Azari Jahromi and Ebrahim Shafiei 66.jpg

One of the Iranian hackers named Ebrahim Shafiei unveiled his creation, the first Iranian hacking OS in the world, in the presence of Mohammad-Javad Azari Jahromi. This product, called "BlackWin OS," is a competitor to its American counterpart, Kali Linux. However, Ebrahim Shafiei and his team, known as the Abadal Security Team, did not receive any support from the Iranian government.