By John Lee. Iraq's Council of Ministers has announced public holidays for two upcoming religious occasions. For Eid Al-Adha, all government ministries and state institutions will be closed from Tuesday 26th May through Saturday 30th May, with official working hours resuming on Sunday 31st May. A further public holiday has been declared for Thursday 4th […]
By John Lee. The Council of Ministers has approved a public holiday for Eid al-Fitr, suspending official working hours across state institutions from Wednesday 18th March until Monday 23rd March. Government offices are scheduled to resume normal operations on Tuesday 24th March. Eid al-Fitr marks the end of Ramadan, a month of fasting in the Islamic […]
By John Lee. Prime Minister Muhammad Shia Al-Sudani has directed the suspension of official working hours on Thursday (5th January) due to "bad weather" in most of Iraq. According to Rudaw, heavy rains have affected many parts of the country this week. (Source: General Secretariat for the Council of Ministers, Rudaw)
By John Lee. Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi has announced that the Eid al-Adha holiday will begin on Saturday 9th July, and end on Thursday 14th July. Government institutions will resume work on Sunday 17th July. The Iraqi Stock Exchange will also close during this period. (Sources: General Secretariat for the Council of Ministers, ISX, Rabee)
By John Lee. The Iraqi Cabinet held its weekly meeting on Tuesday under the chairmanship of Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kadhimi. Following discussions, the Cabinet decided to designate 3rd October every year as Iraq's National Day, to celebrate and mark the independence of Iraq and the end of the British mandate on 3rd October, 1932. It […]
By John Lee. Associated Press reports that the Iraqi government has announced a two-day mandatory official holiday beginning on Wednesday due to the heatwave, with temperatures expected to exceed 50C (122F). The public holiday will apply to all government workers. Meanwhile, the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) has announced that Thursday, July 21st, is to be […]
By John Lee. The Iraqi government has declared a four-day holiday starting on Thursday, as the country attempts to cope with temperatures expected to exceed 50 degrees Celsius (122 Fahrenheit). Highest temperatures are expected on Sunday, and in the Central and Southern areas of the country, including Baghdad. Poor electricity supplies will continue to cause […]
By John Lee. The Iraqi government has declared an official holiday on Thursday due to the continuing heatwave affecting the country. The Daily Mail reports that several provinces have reported temperatures above 50C (122F), causing particular difficulties for people who are fasting during the long daylight hours in the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. The Eid […]
By Padraig O'Hannelly. A recent report from Al Monitor highlights the shocking number of official and unofficial holidays in Iraq, and the affect that this is having on commercial activity and education. But that's just part of the picture. Due to its plentiful oil reserves, many would consider Iraq to be an example of a […]
By Shukur Khilkhal for Al-Monitor. Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. Given the many official and unofficial holidays in Iraq, the country seems to be almost on permanent vacation throughout the year. Schools find themselves unable to complete their curricula, while economists warn against a recession […]
