Aref was born on 19 December 1951 in Yazd.[5][6][7] His father, Mirza Ahmad Aref, was a famous businessman.
He received a bachelor's degree in electronics engineering from the University of Tehran, and a master's degree and a PhD in electrical and communication engineering from Stanford University in 1975, 1976 and 1980, respectively.[5] His PhD thesis was on the information theory of networks, supervised by Thomas M. Cover.[8] He introduced and analyzed deterministic relay networks which is later termed as Aref Networks.[9] During his education at Tehran University, he led many protests and was arrested by SAVAK prior to the Iranian Revolution.
Career
During his political career, Aref has held important positions in the Islamic Republic of Iran. Following the Islamic Revolution, he began his political career. His first major political post was in 1981 when he became vice president of communication company. He later became acting president of the company in 1983 and became deputy minister of science on the following year. Aref was a faculty member of Isfahan University of Technology until 1994.
Aref, who was a professor at University of Tehran, was elected as its chancellor in 1994.[5] He began his career with creating Faculty of Social Sciences and also Institute of Geophysics. After his appointment as minister of technology, Aref was resigned as chancellor of the Tehran University in 1997.[5]
He was nominated for parliamentary election of 2008 as the reformist front's first in the list but he withdrew to protest the rejection of some candidates by the Guardian Council.[10] In June 2013, Aref announced that he together with other reformist figures was planning to launch a national party, namely Hope of Iran.[11] On the other hand, Iran's president-elect Hassan Rouhani stated that Aref will be one of his cabinet members.[12] However, Aref rejected Rouhani's invite for a political post (Vice Presidency or Ministry of Science) to focus on his party's establishment. He also announced his interest in becoming one of Rouhani's advisers in politics and human rights.
Aref and his wife Hamideh in Mashhad during a campaign meetingAref and his wife Hamideh at Fajr Film Festival
Aref was one of the potential candidates for the presidential elections held in June 2013.[7] He said that he would not stand if Khatami run but after Khatami declined, Aref announced that he would run in the election. He registered on 11 May 2013 and was confirmed by the Guardian Council. His major goals were lowering the unemployment rate and resolving high inflation. He pledged an extra 1 million jobs annually, which would include 200 thousand jobs from tourism development. He also added that if elected, his administration would bolster Iran's international relations and would find a "political solution" to closing the "[nuclear] dossier once and for all". Aref said he would remain "committed to the law" throughout the election process, promising to implement an economic plan to propel the country out of inflation and to achieve development and progress.[13] Aref censured the foreign policy of the Ahmadinejad's administration, vowing to improve Iran's diplomatic ties with other countries if elected president. He added that the next administration can have friendly ties with the world and improve the conditions in the country through such relations. Aref also said he would pursue and implement plans to further the presence and participation of the youth in various arenas of the country.[citation needed] Vowing to tackle unemployment, Aref said he aimed all-out development in various political, cultural, economical and social fields.
"By implementing the subsidy reform plan I will put bread on the tables. I have come to eradicate inflation and create one million job opportunities every year",[citation needed]
Aref announced his decision to drop out of the election in a statement issued late on 11 June, in which he said the decision was made after he received suggestions from former President Mohammad Khatami, who advised to stand aside.[14][15] He also called on the Iranian people to vote en masse in the upcoming presidential election to create a political epic and maintain the dignity of the Islamic Republic of Iran.[16]
Aref speaking in reformist alliance's electoral meeting in Tehran
He was elected to the Parliament with 1,608,926 votes which was the highest in the election. All other 29 Reformists candidates also run to the parliament, the first time since 1980 that all candidates are run from same party in Tehran district.
Personal life
Aref married Hamideh Moravvej Farshi in 1976.[17] Hamideh has a PhD in dermatology and also works at the ministry of science. They have three sons.
In 2017, his son Hamid Reza said in an interview "I'm proud that [my] capabilities come from 'good genes'...", which sparked controversy.[18]
^Buchta, Wilfried (2000), Who rules Iran?: the structure of power in the Islamic Republic, Washington DC: The Washington Institute for Near East Policy, The Konrad Adenauer Stiftung, p. 180, ISBN0-944029-39-6
^Ratnakar, N.; Kramer, G. (2006), "The multicast capacity of deterministic relay networks with no interference", IEEE Transactions on Information Theory, 52 (6): 2425–2432, doi:10.1109/TIT.2006.874431, S2CID14022387
