Jasim Mohammed Jaafar is the Iraq

Iraq

Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....

i Minister for Youth & Sports in the government of Nouri al-Maliki

Nouri al-Maliki

Nouri Kamil Mohammed Hasan al-Maliki , also known as Jawad al-Maliki or Abu Esraa, is the Prime Minister of Iraq and the secretary-general of the Islamic Dawa Party. Al-Maliki and his government succeeded the Iraqi Transitional Government. He is currently in his second term as Prime Minister...

. He was confirmed by the Iraqi National Assembly on 2006-05-20, having previously served as the Minister for Construction and Housing in the Iraqi Transitional Government

Iraqi Transitional Government

The Iraqi Transitional Government was the government of Iraq from May 3rd, 2005, when it replaced the Iraqi Interim Government, until May 20th, 2006, when it was replaced by the first permanent government....

.

Jaafar was born in Tuz Khurmatu, Salah ad Din Governorate, Iraq. He went to university in Sulaymaniyah

Sulaymaniyah

Sulaymaniyah is a city in Iraqi Kurdistan, Iraq. It is the capital of Sulaymaniyah Governorate. Sulaymaniyah is surrounded by the Azmar Range, Goizja Range and the Qaiwan Range in the north east, Baranan Mountain in the south and the Tasluje Hills in the west. The city has a semi-arid climate with...

 where he obtained a masters degree in civil engineering. He joined the opposition to Saddam Hussein

Saddam Hussein

Saddam Hussein Abd al-Majid al-Tikriti was the fifth President of Iraq, serving in this capacity from 16 July 1979 until 9 April 2003...

 in 1976 and was sentenced to death in 1981. He went into exile to Iraqi Kurdistan

Iraqi Kurdistan

Iraqi Kurdistan or Kurdistan Region is an autonomous region of Iraq. It borders Iran to the east, Turkey to the north, Syria to the west and the rest of Iraq to the south. The regional capital is Arbil, known in Kurdish as Hewlêr...

 and helped found the Islamic Union of Iraqi Turkoman

Islamic Union of Iraqi Turkoman

The Islamic Union of Iraqi Turkoman is a political party in Iraq led by Abbas al-Bayati. It was formed in 1991 and participated in discussions with other exile groups before the invasion of Iraq...

in 1991, becoming its deputy leader.