The Iraqi Council of Ministers announced a six-day official holiday for Eid al-Fitr starting March 18, 2026. The Ministry of Education has issued stern warnings to private schools attempting to bypass the closure, threatening severe legal consequences.
The Iraqi Council of Ministers has officially declared a six-day public holiday to mark Eid al-Fitr, spanning from Wednesday, March 18, 2026, through Monday, March 23, 2026. Official duties and classes are scheduled to resume on Tuesday, March 24, 2026, according to the official student news channel قناة طلاب العراق الرسمية.
The closure applies universally to all government ministries, universities, and both public and private schools across Baghdad and all Iraqi provinces, as emphasized by نيمار ابن الانبار, a prominent Iraqi education news channel.
Following the announcement, multiple education-focused channels reported a wave of defiance from private institutions attempting to hold classes during the mandated break. In response, the Ministry of Education directed all private school administrations to strictly adhere to official directives, warning that failure to comply would force the school's administration to "bear all legal consequences," according to local news aggregator واحد عراق.
The enforcement measures have been particularly stringent in southern Iraq. The Basra Education Directorate noted that despite clear instructions not to violate the provincial council's holiday decision—issued to "preserve the safety of our sons and daughters"—several private schools were caught holding classes.
Student news network سنتر السادس | Al-Santer reported that the Basra directorate confirmed these schools will face "the severest punishments." To enforce the mandate, the directorate has formed investigative committees and instructed educational supervisors and department heads to submit daily reports identifying non-compliant schools for immediate investigation.
The source material consists entirely of localized Iraqi channels focused on student affairs and national news. Despite the backdrop of severe regional conflict and riots targeting foreign missions in Iraq outlined in the background context, these specific messages are strictly domestic and administrative, focusing heavily on governmental enforcement of holiday closures. The language used by the education directorate regarding the 'safety' of students may lightly allude to the volatile security environment, though the text attributes the closure directly to the Eid al-Fitr holiday.