Latest news with #Qusai
Shafaq News
14-07-2025
- Business
- Shafaq News
Waiting for work: Iraq's youthquake that never hit
Shafaq News At 26, Maryam from Babil province holds a degree in administration and economics, yet her path to stable employment has been fraught with obstacles. After graduation, she was eager to start her career but quickly confronted the harsh reality of stalled public sector recruitment. As the Iraqi government hiring slowed to a crawl, competition for stable jobs grew fiercer. Determined not to be sidelined, Maryam shifted her focus to the private sector. She honed new skills to increase her competitiveness and ultimately secured a position. Yet even in the private sector, challenges persisted—intense competition, job insecurity, and unstable wages shaped her daily experience. Maryam's story reflects the struggles faced by thousands of young graduates across Iraq. She urges the government to collaborate with the private sector in launching comprehensive training programs, promoting entrepreneurship, and bolstering small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). For her, these steps are vital not only for economic recovery but also for restoring hope and dignity among Iraq's youth. 'Many of us are willing to work hard—we just need someone to invest in our potential,' she reflected to Shafaq News. 'We don't want to wait years for a job that may never come.' Idle Majority Iraq's population is overwhelmingly young, over 61% are under the age of 30, totaling nearly 28.7 million people in a country of 47 million. This demographic should serve as a tremendous advantage, yet it has become a pressing concern. In 2024, the International Labour Organization reported rates to exceed 36%, which is more than triple the national adult unemployment rate. Among young women, unemployment soars past 65%. A 2023 World Bank study further revealed that nearly 28% of university graduates under 30 remain unemployed, highlighting a severe mismatch between academic qualifications and market needs. 'We've entered a period where youth energy is overflowing, but the market is too weak to channel it,' economist Ali Al-Darraji told Shafaq News. Each year, approximately 700,000 young Iraqis enter the workforce. However, the state, historically the largest employer, can no longer absorb new graduates at scale. The public sector is saturated, while the private sector remains underdeveloped and unable to create sufficient job opportunities. Cracks in the Core Economist Safwan Qusai underscored the urgent need to refocus national efforts on human development, emphasizing that vocational and technical training, rather than solely academic degrees, offer the most effective pathway to bridge the skills gap and prepare youth for a globalized economy. 'We must invest in specialized tracks that reflect where global demand is headed—not just where tradition tells us to go,' Qusai urged in an interview with our agency. With around 15 million Iraqis of working age, Qusai stressed the importance of developing specialized certificates for high-demand skills. 'Shifting from theoretical knowledge to applied skills will lower labor costs, boost productivity, and expand employment across sustainable development sectors,' he noted. Currently, Iraq's private sector contributes only 37% to GDP, compared to over 60% in neighboring Jordan. Less than 18% of young Iraqis hold formal jobs in the private sector, while many remain underemployed or trapped in the informal economy. This structural weakness limits job creation, especially in impoverished provinces. The expert also highlighted the Central Bank's 4-trillion-dinar initiative (approximately $3.1 billion) as a crucial instrument for Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) growth. To date, over 2.1 trillion dinars (around $1.6 billion) have been allocated to nearly 10,000 small businesses, many youth-led or based in high-unemployment areas. Riyada Initiative In response to these challenges, Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani launched the 'Riyada' (Entrepreneurship) initiative in March 2023 to nurture innovation and self-reliance among Iraq's youth. Currently, over 828 training halls operate nationwide, supported by more than 1,000 certified trainers who equip aspiring entrepreneurs with essential skills. The program also facilitates access to financing through local banks, providing capital to transform ideas into viable businesses. Hussein Falamarz, the program's Executive Director and Adviser to the Prime Minister, described the initiative's five-step framework: online registration, in-person training, project feasibility assessment, digital loan applications, and a 10-year follow-up process. 'What distinguishes Riyada is its long-term vision—we're not handing out jobs, we're helping youth build livelihoods,' Falamarz explained to Shafaq News, adding, 'We are creating an ecosystem where young Iraqis can build their future without waiting for a government job.' He also noted that many of the program's beneficiaries, once excluded from the economy, are now contributing through their own ventures, stressing that plans are underway to expand 'Riyada' to the Kurdistan Region so that thousands more youth can benefit. Invest in the Youth Economic researcher Ahmed Abdul-Rahbeh viewed Iraq's youthful population not as a burden but as a strategic asset capable of propelling long-term development—if properly harnessed. Speaking with our agency, he further advocated revitalizing Iraq's role as the 'breadbasket of the Middle East' by expanding agriculture through modern irrigation, solar-powered greenhouses, and youth-focused financing. However, despite the fertile lands between the Tigris and Euphrates, these resources remain underutilized. Abdul-Rahbeh also called for public-private investments to revive foundational industries like cement, chemicals, and textiles, which could generate widespread employment across urban and rural areas. He proposed establishing a national 'Industry Support Day' to rally focus and resources around industrial revitalization. 'Youth don't want charity—they want a fair system where effort and innovation are rewarded,' he emphasized. Additionally, he highlighted the potential of emerging sectors such as medical technology, digital services, and agritech. While the private sector currently employs nearly 80% of Iraq's labor force, most jobs are informal, low-wage, and lack benefits. Only 7% of private sector workers receive pensions or healthcare coverage. To transform the labor market, Abdul-Rahbeh recommended aligning education with market needs, expanding vocational training, and offering five-year tax exemptions for youth-led projects in underserved provinces. He concluded that Iraq's demographic dividend can drive national development only through coordinated efforts among the government, private sector, and civil society, underpinned by flexible policies and continuous monitoring.
Asharq Al-Awsat
29-03-2025
- Asharq Al-Awsat
Israeli Settlers Seen on Camera Assaulting a Palestinian Village. Police Arrest Only Palestinians
Over a dozen Israeli settlers attacked a Palestinian village in the southern Israeli-occupied West Bank on Friday, beating residents with sticks and rocks, in an incident captured with rare clarity by security cameras. The video obtained by AP and testimonies from Palestinian witnesses appeared to conflict with the account of the attack provided by Israeli police and military, who arrested over 20 Palestinians afterwards. The violence in the village of Jinba follows a settler attack earlier this week in a nearby village in which Hamdan Ballal, a Palestinian co-director of the Oscar-winning documentary 'No Other Land," was left bloodied and bruised before being detained by Israeli soldiers for about 20 hours. The videos provide uncommonly stark images of the type of settler assault Palestinians in the West Bank say now occurs frequently. They say radical Jewish settlers rarely, if ever, face repercussions for attacking Palestinian communities, while Palestinians are often rounded up in droves and detained by Israeli forces. Settlers descend on Jinba AP obtained footage from two security cameras belonging to the Al-Amur family, whose home came under attack. Footage from one camera shows a jeep, an ATV and a white pick-up truck speed up to the edge of the village. A number of settlers pile out of them and run out of the frame, and the screams of Palestinian women can be heard. The settlers then return into view, and at least 15 of them ascend a slope, getting closer to the camera. Many are masked, at least three are carrying bats or sticks, and one is armed with an assault rifle. One can be seen throwing a rock, then bending to collect more. The matriarch of the Al-Amur family, Oula Awad, said she saw the settlers approaching her house between 8:00 AM and 9:00 AM, as she was doing laundry outside with her daughter. Her son, Qusai, 17, and husband, Aziz, 63, were washing up to prepare for Ramadan prayers when the settlers pulled up in vehicles and emerged. 'The settler runs toward me and told me, 'Don't wave. Do not move forward. We will hit you,'' she said. In security footage taken from a different camera at the house, she and her daughter, 16-year-old Handa, are seen screaming and waving clothes in the air, calling for help. At one point, Awad makes a motion waving her arms. It is not clear if she throws something at a settler rushing toward her. The settlers are then seen converging on Qusai. One settler begins hitting him with a stick as he tries to run away. Another settler smashes his head with a rock, sending him to the ground. Four settlers then kick and beat him before running away. Awad said the settlers locked her and her daughter in a side room as they beat her younger son, Ahmad, and her husband Aziz. 'They entered the room and hit the windows,' said Awad. They tried to burn the furniture. 'My husband was standing on the stairs, and they started beating him.' A video taken by Qusai and shared with the AP showed Ahmad on the ground with a head laceration. Aziz lies nearby, his face bloodied. Five Palestinians remain in hospitals. Aziz had a chest injury and underwent surgery for skull fractures; Ahmed, 16, is in intensive care. Qusai suffered a broken arm, bruises and cuts. Another villager, Maher Mohammed, had cuts and bruises, as did his son Osama, who was also undergoing kidney examinations. Nidal Younis, the head of the Masafer Yatta village council, witnessed part of the attack and was detained by police for two hours afterward. He said soldiers who arrived on scene following the attack prevented Palestinians from nearby villages from helping and threw stun grenades at homes, a claim to which the military did not respond. Police and military provide a conflicting account Following the incident, Israeli police said they detained 22 Palestinians from the village on suspicion of stone throwing and brought them in for further investigation. They said Palestinians had attacked two settler shepherds nearby, minorly injuring them. 'The security forces view the series of attacks in the area seriously, and will take strong action to bring those involved to justice,' the police said. They did not respond when asked by the AP why no Israeli civilians were arrested. The military gave a somewhat different account, saying an Israeli civilian had been attacked and injured by militants near an Israeli settlement. Then, it said 'a violent confrontation developed between a number of Israeli civilians and Palestinians,' injuring another Israeli civilian. Masafer Yatta was designated by the Israeli military as a live-fire training zone in the 1980s, and the military has ordered the expulsion of the residents, mostly Arab Bedouin. Around 1,000 residents have largely remained in place, but soldiers regularly come in to demolish homes, tents, water tanks and olive orchards. Palestinians and rights groups say Israeli forces usually turn a blind eye or intervene on behalf of the settlers. The war in Gaza has sparked a surge of violence in the West Bank, with the Israeli military carrying out widescale military operations that have killed hundreds of Palestinians and displaced tens of thousands. There has been a rise in settler violence as well as Palestinian attacks on Israelis.
Arab News
29-03-2025
- Arab News
Video obtained by AP shows settler assault on small Palestinian village with rare clarity
JERUSALEM: Over a dozen Israeli settlers attacked a Palestinian village in the southern Israeli-occupied West Bank on Friday, beating residents with sticks and rocks, in an incident captured with rare clarity by security cameras. The video obtained by AP and testimonies from Palestinian witnesses appeared to conflict with the account of the attack provided by Israeli police and military, who arrested over 20 Palestinians afterwards. The violence in the village of Jinba follows a settler attack earlier this week in a nearby village in which Hamdan Ballal, a Palestinian co-director of the Oscar-winning documentary 'No Other Land,' was left bloodied and bruised before being detained by Israeli soldiers for about 20 hours. The videos provide uncommonly stark images of the type of settler assault Palestinians in the West Bank say now occurs frequently. They say radical Jewish settlers rarely, if ever, face repercussions for attacking Palestinian communities, while Palestinians are often rounded up in droves and detained by Israeli forces. Settlers descend on Jinba AP obtained footage from two security cameras belonging to the Al-Amur family, whose home came under attack. Footage from one camera shows a jeep, an ATV and a white pick-up truck speed up to the edge of the village. A number of settlers pile out of them and run out of the frame, and the screams of Palestinian women can be heard. The settlers then return into view, and at least 15 of them ascend a slope, getting closer to the camera. Many are masked, at least three are carrying bats or sticks, and one is armed with an assault rifle. One can be seen throwing a rock, then bending to collect more. The matriarch of the Al-Amur family, Oula Awad, said she saw the settlers approaching her house between 8:00 AM and 9:00 AM, as she was doing laundry outside with her daughter. Her son, Qusai, 17, and husband, Aziz, 63, were washing up to prepare for Ramadan prayers when the settlers pulled up in vehicles and emerged. 'The settler runs toward me and told me, 'Don't wave. Do not move forward. We will hit you,'' she said. In security footage taken from a different camera at the house, she and her daughter, 16-year-old Handa, are seen screaming and waving clothes in the air, calling for help. At one point, Awad makes a motion waving her arms. It is not clear if she throws something at a settler rushing toward her. The settlers are then seen converging on Qusai. One settler begins hitting him with a stick as he tries to run away. Another settler smashes his head with a rock, sending him to the ground. Four settlers then kick and beat him before running away. Awad said the settlers locked her and her daughter in a side room as they beat her younger son, Ahmad, and her husband Aziz. 'They entered the room and hit the windows,' said Awad. They tried to burn the furniture. 'My husband was standing on the stairs, and they started beating him.' A video taken by Qusai and shared with the AP showed Ahmad on the ground with a head laceration. Aziz lies nearby, his face bloodied. Five Palestinians remain in hospitals. Aziz had a chest injury and underwent surgery for skull fractures; Ahmed, 16, is in intensive care. Qusai suffered a broken arm, bruises and cuts. Another villager, Maher Mohammed, had cuts and bruises, as did his son Osama, who was also undergoing kidney examinations. Nidal Younis, the head of the Masafer Yatta village council, witnessed part of the attack and was detained by police for two hours afterward. He said soldiers who arrived on scene following the attack prevented Palestinians from nearby villages from helping and threw stun grenades at homes, a claim to which the military did not respond. Police and military provide a conflicting account Following the incident, Israeli police said they detained 22 Palestinians from the village on suspicion of stone throwing and brought them in for further investigation. They said Palestinians had attacked two settler shepherds nearby, minorly injuring them. 'The security forces view the series of attacks in the area seriously, and will take strong action to bring those involved to justice,' the police said. They did not respond when asked by the AP why no Israeli civilians were arrested. The military gave a somewhat different account, saying an Israeli civilian had been attacked and injured by militants near an Israeli settlement. Then, it said 'a violent confrontation developed between a number of Israeli civilians and Palestinians,' injuring another Israeli civilian. Masafer Yatta was designated by the Israeli military as a live-fire training zone in the 1980s, and the military has ordered the expulsion of the residents, mostly Arab Bedouin. Around 1,000 residents have largely remained in place, but soldiers regularly come in to demolish homes, tents, water tanks and olive orchards. Palestinians and rights groups say Israeli forces usually turn a blind eye or intervene on behalf of the settlers. The war in Gaza has sparked a surge of violence in the West Bank, with the Israeli military carrying out widescale military operations that have killed hundreds of Palestinians and displaced tens of thousands. There has been a rise in settler violence as well as Palestinian attacks on Israelis.
The Hill
28-03-2025
- The Hill
Video obtained by AP shows settler assault on small Palestinian village with rare clarity
JERUSALEM (AP) — Over a dozen Israeli settlers attacked a Palestinian village in the southern Israeli-occupied West Bank on Friday, beating residents with sticks and rocks, in an incident captured with rare clarity by security cameras. The video obtained by AP and testimonies from Palestinian witnesses appeared to conflict with the account of the attack provided by Israeli police and military, who arrested over 20 Palestinians afterwards. The violence in the village of Jinba follows a settler attack earlier this week in a nearby village in which Hamdan Ballal, a Palestinian co-director of the Oscar-winning documentary 'No Other Land,' was left bloodied and bruised before being detained by Israeli soldiers for about 20 hours. The videos provide uncommonly stark images of the type of settler assault Palestinians in the West Bank say now occurs frequently. They say radical Jewish settlers rarely, if ever, face repercussions for attacking Palestinian communities, while Palestinians are often rounded up in droves and detained by Israeli forces. Settlers descend on Jinba AP obtained footage from two security cameras belonging to the Al-Amur family, whose home came under attack. Footage from one camera shows a jeep, an ATV and a white pick-up truck speed up to the edge of the village. A number of settlers pile out of them and run out of the frame, and the screams of Palestinian women can be heard. The settlers then return into view, and at least 15 of them ascend a slope, getting closer to the camera. Many are masked, at least three are carrying bats or sticks, and one is armed with an assault rifle. One can be seen throwing a rock, then bending to collect more. The matriarch of the Al-Amur family, Oula Awad, said she saw the settlers approaching her house between 8:00 AM and 9:00 AM, as she was doing laundry outside with her daughter. Her son, Qusai, 17, and husband, Aziz, 63, were washing up to prepare for Ramadan prayers when the settlers pulled up in vehicles and emerged. 'The settler runs toward me and told me, 'Don't wave. Do not move forward. We will hit you,'' she said. In security footage taken from a different camera at the house, she and her daughter, 16-year-old Handa, are seen screaming and waving clothes in the air, calling for help. At one point, Awad makes a motion waving her arms. It is not clear if she throws something at a settler rushing toward her. The settlers are then seen converging on Qusai. One settler begins hitting him with a stick as he tries to run away. Another settler smashes his head with a rock, sending him to the ground. Four settlers then kick and beat him before running away. Awad said the settlers locked her and her daughter in a side room as they beat her younger son, Ahmad, and her husband Aziz. 'They entered the room and hit the windows,' said Awad. They tried to burn the furniture. 'My husband was standing on the stairs, and they started beating him.' A video taken by Qusai and shared with the AP showed Ahmad on the ground with a head laceration. Aziz lies nearby, his face bloodied. Five Palestinians remain in hospitals. Aziz had a chest injury and underwent surgery for skull fractures; Ahmed, 16, is in intensive care. Qusai suffered a broken arm, bruises and cuts. Another villager, Maher Mohammed, had cuts and bruises, as did his son Osama, who was also undergoing kidney examinations. Nidal Younis, the head of the Masafer Yatta village council, witnessed part of the attack and was detained by police for two hours afterward. He said soldiers who arrived on scene following the attack prevented Palestinians from nearby villages from helping and threw stun grenades at homes, a claim to which the military did not respond. Police and military provide a conflicting account Following the incident, Israeli police said they detained 22 Palestinians from the village on suspicion of stone throwing and brought them in for further investigation. They said Palestinians had attacked two settler shepherds nearby, minorly injuring them. 'The security forces view the series of attacks in the area seriously, and will take strong action to bring those involved to justice,' the police said. They did not respond when asked by the AP why no Israeli civilians were arrested. The military gave a somewhat different account, saying an Israeli civilian had been attacked and injured by militants near an Israeli settlement. Then, it said 'a violent confrontation developed between a number of Israeli civilians and Palestinians,' injuring another Israeli civilian. Masafer Yatta was designated by the Israeli military as a live-fire training zone in the 1980s, and the military has ordered the expulsion of the residents, mostly Arab Bedouin. Around 1,000 residents have largely remained in place, but soldiers regularly come in to demolish homes, tents, water tanks and olive orchards. Palestinians and rights groups say Israeli forces usually turn a blind eye or intervene on behalf of the settlers. The war in Gaza has sparked a surge of violence in the West Bank, with the Israeli military carrying out widescale military operations that have killed hundreds of Palestinians and displaced tens of thousands. There has been a rise in settler violence as well as Palestinian attacks on Israelis.
The Independent
28-03-2025
- The Independent
Video obtained by AP shows settler assault on small Palestinian village with rare clarity
Over a dozen Israeli settlers attacked a Palestinian village in the southern Israeli-occupied West Bank on Friday, beating residents with sticks and rocks, in an incident captured with rare clarity by security cameras. The video obtained by AP and testimonies from Palestinian witnesses appeared to conflict with the account of the attack provided by Israeli police and military, who arrested over 20 Palestinians afterwards. The violence in the village of Jinba follows a settler attack earlier this week in a nearby village in which Hamdan Ballal, a Palestinian co-director of the Oscar-winning documentary 'No Other Land," was left bloodied and bruised before being detained by Israeli soldiers for about 20 hours. The videos provide uncommonly stark images of the type of settler assault Palestinians in the West Bank say now occurs frequently. They say radical Jewish settlers rarely, if ever, face repercussions for attacking Palestinian communities, while Palestinians are often rounded up in droves and detained by Israeli forces. Settlers descend on Jinba AP obtained footage from two security cameras belonging to the Al-Amur family, whose home came under attack. Footage from one camera shows a jeep, an ATV and a white pick-up truck speed up to the edge of the village. A number of settlers pile out of them and run out of the frame, and the screams of Palestinian women can be heard. The settlers then return into view, and at least 15 of them ascend a slope, getting closer to the camera. Many are masked, at least three are carrying bats or sticks, and one is armed with an assault rifle. One can be seen throwing a rock, then bending to collect more. The matriarch of the Al-Amur family, Oula Awad, said she saw the settlers approaching her house between 8:00 AM and 9:00 AM, as she was doing laundry outside with her daughter. Her son, Qusai, 17, and husband, Aziz, 63, were washing up to prepare for Ramadan prayers when the settlers pulled up in vehicles and emerged. 'The settler runs toward me and told me, 'Don't wave. Do not move forward. We will hit you,'' she said. In security footage taken from a different camera at the house, she and her daughter, 16-year-old Handa, are seen screaming and waving clothes in the air, calling for help. At one point, Awad makes a motion waving her arms. It is not clear if she throws something at a settler rushing toward her. The settlers are then seen converging on Qusai. One settler begins hitting him with a stick as he tries to run away. Another settler smashes his head with a rock, sending him to the ground. Four settlers then kick and beat him before running away. Awad said the settlers locked her and her daughter in a side room as they beat her younger son, Ahmad, and her husband Aziz. 'They entered the room and hit the windows,' said Awad. They tried to burn the furniture. 'My husband was standing on the stairs, and they started beating him.' A video taken by Qusai and shared with the AP showed Ahmad on the ground with a head laceration. Aziz lies nearby, his face bloodied. Five Palestinians remain in hospitals. Aziz had a chest injury and underwent surgery for skull fractures; Ahmed, 16, is in intensive care. Qusai suffered a broken arm, bruises and cuts. Another villager, Maher Mohammed, had cuts and bruises, as did his son Osama, who was also undergoing kidney examinations. Nidal Younis, the head of the Masafer Yatta village council, witnessed part of the attack and was detained by police for two hours afterward. He said soldiers who arrived on scene following the attack prevented Palestinians from nearby villages from helping and threw stun grenades at homes, a claim to which the military did not respond. Police and military provide a conflicting account Following the incident, Israeli police said they detained 22 Palestinians from the village on suspicion of stone throwing and brought them in for further investigation. They said Palestinians had attacked two settler shepherds nearby, minorly injuring them. 'The security forces view the series of attacks in the area seriously, and will take strong action to bring those involved to justice,' the police said. They did not respond when asked by the AP why no Israeli civilians were arrested. The military gave a somewhat different account, saying an Israeli civilian had been attacked and injured by militants near an Israeli settlement. Then, it said 'a violent confrontation developed between a number of Israeli civilians and Palestinians,' injuring another Israeli civilian. Masafer Yatta was designated by the Israeli military as a live-fire training zone in the 1980s, and the military has ordered the expulsion of the residents, mostly Arab Bedouin. Around 1,000 residents have largely remained in place, but soldiers regularly come in to demolish homes, tents, water tanks and olive orchards. Palestinians and rights groups say Israeli forces usually turn a blind eye or intervene on behalf of the settlers. The war in Gaza has sparked a surge of violence in the West Bank, with the Israeli military carrying out widescale military operations that have killed hundreds of Palestinians and displaced tens of thousands. There has been a rise in settler violence as well as Palestinian attacks on Israelis.
