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From Al Jazeera. Any opinions expressed are those of the authors, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News.

Iraq's prime minister has rejected Saudi and UAE media claims that a $500m ransom was paid by Qatar to Shia Muslim armed groups in Iraq to secure the release of 26 kidnapped Qatari hunters.

Haider al-Abadi said that money was received by the Iraqi government but the sum was still in the Iraqi central bank.

Al Jazeera's Alan Fisher reports:

By Omar Sattar for Al Monitor. Any opinions expressed here are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News.

Iraq's firebrand Shiite cleric presents his political successor

In a meeting with the ministers of defense and interior in Muqtada al-Sadr's Najaf office May 3, Sadr's nephew Ahmed al-Sadr stood directly behind his uncle in what was taken as the younger Sadr's introduction as the second-highest authority of the Sadrist movement after Muqtada al-Sadr himself.

A few weeks ago, Ahmed al-Sadr appeared on the Iraqi scene as the head of the Sadrist movement's reform committee, introducing its political agendas and plans for the post-Islamic State period.

The Sadrist movement presented its strategies at the end of April to Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, President Fuad Masum, parliament Speaker Salim al-Jabouri, Kurdistan Regional Government President Massoud Barzani and former President Jalal Talabani.

The Sadrist movement has long been closely associated with the civil movement, having forged an alliance at the start of the demonstrations calling for reform that broke out in 2015.

Ahmed al-Sadr is the son of Muqtada al-Sadr's brother Mustafa al-Sadr. Ahmed al-Sadr was born in Najaf in 1986 but did not receive a religious education in traditional Shiite schools. Instead he was guided and supported by his uncle, who sent him to Lebanon to major in political science at Beirut University, where he completed a master’s degree.

Ahmed al-Sadr returned to Iraq and made public appearances a few days after Muqtada al-Sadr's announcement that he had received death threats March 24 from what he called the “trinity parties,” people involved with the US occupation, terrorism and corruption. He subsequently had to delegate powers to his aides.

As a result, Ahmed al-Sadr was appointed to head the recently formed committee to administer the Sadrist initiatives for political reform and the post-liberation period. He began with meeting with several Iraqi leaders.

By John Lee.

Officials at Baghdad International Airport have reportedly intercepted a shipment of dollars and euros worth a total of $500m (£389m).

Writing in The Independent, Patrick Cockburn claims the cash was contained in 23 large bags unloaded from a Qatari plane, and was intended as a ransom for 24 Qataris, several of them leading members of the Qatari royal family, who were kidnapped 16 months ago by a Shia militia task force.

Although the funds were seized by the authorities, the Qataris were subsequently released from captivity.

The full story can be read here.

(Source: The Independent)

By Salam Zidane for Al Monitor. Any views expressed here are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. 

It's said that some college degrees aren't worth the paper they're printed on. Some graduates in Iraq are finding that to be true. Others can't even get the paper.

Dozens of students protested March 8 in front of the private Mazaya College, calling on the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research to accredit their university and issue diplomas.

Mohammed al-Ghazi, who graduated two years ago from the college in southeastern Iraq, said the school still refuses to grant him and others their degrees, instead saying the ministry is reviewing them.

“I spent millions of dinars [1 million dinars equals about $860] at Mazaya College to obtain a degree in computer engineering. After I completed my fourth year, I found out that the college wasn't accredited and its degree is worthless on the market,” Ghazi told Al-Monitor.

After the protests, the ministry decided March 14 that it will develop a special test for Mazaya graduates and that if they pass it, they will be considered qualified in their field of study and receive a certificate from the ministry. The ministry hasn't yet started the process, which it expects to be complicated and lengthy.

In December, Iraq and five other Arab countries were removed from the World Economic Forum (WEF) global education quality index because their schools don't meet basic education standards. The other countries are Syria, Yemen, Libya, Sudan and Somalia.

Arab countries that made the list, with their ranking, are: Qatar, 4; United Arab Emirates, 10; Lebanon, 25; Bahrain, 33; Jordan, 45; and Saudi Arabia, 54. The index includes 140 countries.

After 2003, when the Iraq war began, many international and foreign universities stopped recognizing Iraqi university degrees because their standards couldn't be verified. Iraqis are asked to take proficiency tests before being admitted to some universities abroad. In the United States, each institution develops its own standards and requirements; many use credential verification services.

By John Lee.

Qatar-based Ooredoo has announced that its Iraqi unit Asiacell has maintained its No.1 revenue market share position, but its revenues have fallen 14 percent:

In its FY 2016 Earnings Statement the company said:

"Despite economic and political challenges in Iraq, Asiacell maintained its revenue and data market leadership. Asiacell successfully reactivated service and rolled out its 3G network to stabilised areas of Iraq. Customer numbers increased by 11% to reach 12 million.

Impacted by the overall challenging business environment and the introduction of a sales tax in August 2015, Asiacell's FY 2016 Revenue decreased 14% to QAR 4.2 billion, down from QAR 4.9 billion.  

"Due to cost optimisation initiatives EBITDA was less impacted, registering QAR 1.9 billion at 2016, down 10% over 2015."

Earlier this week, rival mobile telco Zain announced an 11-percent decline in revenues.

(Source: Ooredoo)

The Turkish-based IHH humanitarian relief organization -- in collaboration with Qatar Khairiyah Organization and Munazamah Dawah Islamiyah Qatar office -- has sent 22 trucks loaded with emergency aid supplies to Northern Iraq.

The trucks carrying 30,000 blankets, 7,500 straw mats, 1,250 flasks, 150 tons of bulgur, 75 tons of pasta, 50 tons of flour, and 6,600 mattresses will make a stop-over in IHH's Kilis coordination center. The aid campaign also involves the purchase and distribution of 750 stove heaters and 175,000 liters of gasoline for them in the region.

IHH Vice President Hasan Aynacı, commenting on the 22 aid trucks headed to Iraqs said:

"I would like to thank Khairiyah Organization and Dawah Islam Organization for their support to the humanitarian aid convoy. Just like how we went to help our Kurdish brothers in Sulaimaniyah before, how we went to help our Arabic brothers in Fallujah, how we went to help our Turkmen brothers in Kirkuk, today we will help our brothers from Mosul among whom are Arabs, Kurds and Turkmens. We cannot remain deaf to their cry for help.”

IHH Humanitarian Relief Organization has previously delivered 6,000 blankets to internally displaced people from Mosul.

(Source: IHH)

The Student Leaders program is an intensive, approximately 6-week exchange program to the United States for up to 120 undergraduate students from the Middle East and North Africa.

Students are divided among U.S. academic institutions where they develop leadership skills and expand their understanding of civil society, as well as the democratic process and how both may be applied in their home communities.

Participants have the opportunity to meet their American peers, engage in local community service activities, and observe and take part in the governmental process on the local, state, and federal levels.

The program includes academic coursework, as well as study tours to various regions of the United States. Upon completion of the U.S.-based programs, the program will work with students to support their civic engagement efforts. A follow-on training is generally held in the region approximately 6 months after the U.S. portion of the program.

WHO IS ELIGIBLE?

Students from the following countries are eligible to apply: Algeria, Bahrain, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Tunisia, and West Bank/Gaza.

This program is open to university students between the ages of 20 and 24. We seek a gender-balanced pool of candidates and give preference to traditionally underserved participants when possible.

While nominees may be undergraduate or graduate students in any field of academic specialization, it is critical that they exhibit a serious interest in pursuing leadership opportunities in their home countries and demonstrate a desire to deepen their civic engagement.

Those who have traveled to the U.S. or studied abroad are ineligible. Applicants should demonstrate sufficient English-language skills to participate in U.S. university-level classes and must be enrolled in and attending a university in their home countries. At the time of application and while participating in the program, participants cannot hold U.S. citizenship or be a U.S. Legal Permanent Resident.

HOW DO PARTICIPANTS APPLY? 

Participants apply for the program online at https://studentleaders.fluidreview.com and are then interviewed and nominated by Embassies.  For questions, please e-mail: [email protected].

Deadline

The deadline for applications is December 31, 2016 with the following exceptions:
For Israeli applicants the application deadline is January 18^th, 2017.

(Source: US State Dept)

By John Lee.

Qatar's Energy Minister has reportedly said that Iran and Iraq are being asked to freeze oil output at current levels, as part of a wider deal to restrain production.

According to ArabianBusiness.com, Mohammed Al Sada told reporters:

"We are discussing with both countries on that and we are looking at various ways and means of coming to a mutual understanding."

Industry sources, and documents seen by Reuters, suggest that Iraq would have to compensate international oil companies (IOCs) for any limits placed on their production, compounding the financial hit of losing much-needed oil revenue.

(Sources: ArabianBusiness.com, Reuters)

By John Lee.

In its results for the first nine months of the year, Qatar-based Ooredoo said this morning that business at its Iraqi subsidiary Asiacell is still affected by the political and economic situation in the country, a "dysfunctional banking system", and VAT impact.

Despite these challenges, Asiacell maintained its revenue leadership in the market and according to the company is well positioned to capture growth as the situation on the ground improves. Customer number increased by 5% to 11.2 million on our leading 3G network.

For the 9M 2016 period, Asiacell's Revenue declined by almost 15% to reach QAR 3.2 billion, down from QAR 3.7 billion in 9M 2015.  

Due to cost optimization initiatives EBITDA was less impacted, registering QAR 1.5 billion in 9M 2016, down 9% as compared to the same period last year. Net Profit for 9M 2016 stood at QAR 79 million, down from QAR 152 million in 9M 2015.

(Source: Ooredoo)