An unnamed source cited by the Iraqi News Agency (INA) said Iraqi Prime Minister Ali Faleh Al-Zaidi ordered three Mosul International Airport service contracts canceled over alleged armed-group links as officials pursue international management.
The contracts cover airport counters leased by Sky Plus, an uncovered internal car park leased by Sama Al-Matar and a taxi office leased by Al-Faisal Al-Shamikh, the source told INA. It said the services would be referred to international companies. INA’s source named no armed groups and gave no details about the alleged ties.
The prime minister’s office said Al-Zaidi directed officials at a Nov. 7 meeting to expedite the airport’s operational launch through joint operation and management by specialized international companies. Nineveh Gov. Abdul Qader Al-Dakhil and Judge Raed Hamid Hussein attended, the office said. Its statement did not address the reported cancellations or allegations.
Shafaq News reported that its review of the contracts showed the car park lease covered 4,228 square meters and was worth 1.776 billion Iraqi dinars over three years. Sky Plus leased seven counters spanning 42 square meters for $58,800 a year, including fees, while the taxi office lease covered four square meters, the outlet reported. The contracts were set for three years, with one renewal option and a 2% increase, according to Shafaq.
Al-Dakhil told 964media that the Transport Ministry and Iraqi Airports Management Department awarded the contracts without consulting him or the Nineveh Provincial Council. He said he sued former Transport Minister Razzaq Muhaibis al-Saadawi and the airports department, and said Al-Zaidi had uncovered the alleged links before local officials knew of them.
964media said documents Al-Dakhil provided included two contracts and a written objection to a third, dated in March. Al-Dakhil told the outlet he discovered the contracts about a week before filing suit.
964media reported that damage during the Islamic State group’s 2014 seizure of Mosul kept the airport closed for 11 years. Former Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani formally opened the rebuilt facility in July 2025, the outlet reported. Shafaq News reported in October that Al-Zaidi had invited international airport operators to invest in Mosul. The latest official statement named no operator and set no timetable for new contracts.
