Saladin province student tops Iraq exam but receives no official recognition

BAGHDAD, Iraq — A sixth-grade student from a village in Iraq's Saladin province has been named the country's top performer in the first round of secondary school entrance examinations, the Iraqi Ministry of Education announced on July 22. Ali Mahmoud Abdullah Aqil al-Dulaimi, who lives with his family in Bishkan village in the Dawcha district south of Saladin city, scored a perfect 700 in the science track. He said he had finished first in his class every year from primary school through secondary school and had never taken private lessons, relying instead on educational videos on YouTube and a strict daily study schedule that continued even during holidays. His father, Mahmoud Aqil, said his son had spent more than a year largely confined to his room, working through pages of notes, equations and formulas. Al-Dulaimi added that despite his ranking, he had received no acknowledgment from Saladin authorities or the Education Ministry, while top-performing students in other provinces had been publicly celebrated. Education Minister Abdul Karim Abtan announced the results, saying 275 students scored a full 700 in the science track, 274 scored 699, and three scored 698.