Kuwait, July 17, 2005: Wataniya Telecom (National Mobile Telecommunications Company K.S.C.) - Ticker: (NMTC) announces its results for the 2nd Quarter ended June 30, 2005, with the Company posting a consolidated net profit of KD 25.6 million (USD 87.2 million) or 60 fils (20 cents) per share, an increase of 22% compared to KD 21.0 million (USD 71.5 million), or 52 fils (18 cents) per share earned in the same period for 2004. On July 5th, 2005 the company launched Bravo, the brand name of Public Telecommunications Company (PTC) in Saudi Arabia, operating a specialized digital wireless platform offering a range of Push To Do services.

"The second quarter for the company has seen tremendous gains with all the commercial operations in the group proving to be EBITDA positive", said Faisal Al-Ayyar, Chairman of Wataniya Telecom. "Clearly, mobile telecommunications is an integral part of people's lives as we see the market penetration continue to increase in each of the markets we are in. Our strategy of re-investing into the operations to have the most up to date technology lets us give our customers the choice in the latest products and services, such as electronic recharging on prepaid, prepaid roaming and superior data throughput. We are on track to launch our services in the Maldives shortly, and we continue to seek out potential telecommunications related opportunities that add value to the group," Mr. Al-Ayyar concluded.

Wataniya Telecom Group First Half Highlights:

* Revenues grew to KD 157.0 million (USD 534.8 million), an increase of 48% compared to the revenues of KD 106.5 million (USD 362.8 million) for the same period in 2004.

* Total active customers increased to 3,916,603 compared to 3,241,741 from the last quarter, an increase of 21%.

* Consolidated earnings per share are 60 fils for the half year ended June 30, 2005.

1st Half 2005 Wataniya Telecom Group Consolidated Results:

REVENUES KD 157.0 million (USD 534.8 million)

EBITDA KD 59.0 million (USD 201.0 million)

NET PROFIT KD 25.6 million (USD 87.2 million)

Kuwait: Wataniya Telecom launched W-Charger, allowing its prepaid customers to electronically recharge their and others accounts. Wataniya also kicked off prepaid roaming giving Wataniya customers the freedom to travel and use their prepaid lines without any deposits or administration. Wataniya Telecom's customer base increased to 906,255 active customers. Revenues for the second quarter were KD 37.7 million (USD 128.4 million) compared to KD 35.1 million (USD 119.6 million) in the same period of 2004. EBITDA for the 2nd quarter of 2005 was KD 17.3 million (USD 58.9 million), or a 46% EBITDA margin, compared to KD 15.7 million (USD 53.5 million), a 45% margin for the 2nd quarter of 2004.

Net profit for the 2nd quarter of 2005 was KD 14.5 million (USD 49.4 million), an increase of 31% compared to KD 11.1 million (USD 37.8 million) for the 2nd quarter of 2004.

Tunisia: The Tunisian mobile market continued its fast growth entering into the busy summer period where Tunisiana now has 35% market share and market penetration has reached 45% or 4.5 million mobile customers. Tunisiana achieved an active customer base of 1,561,731, an increase of 22% over the previous quarter. Revenues for the 2nd quarter of 2005 were KD 22.4 million (USD 76.3 million), an increase of 59% from Q2 2004 or KD 14.1 million (USD 48.0 million). EBITDA was KD 8.0 million (USD 27.3 million), an increase of 38% as compared to KD 5.4 million (USD 18.4 million), for Q2 2004. The net attributable profit to Wataniya Telecom from Tunisiana in Q2 is KD 1.2 million (USD 4.1 million).

Iraq: Asiacell finalized its network for launch of service in Baghdad with the objective of expanding into southern Iraq. Asiacell achieved an active customer base of over 754,014, an increase of 20% over the previous quarter. Revenues for the 2nd quarter of 2005 were KD 13.3 million (USD 45.3 million) compared to KD 5.0 million (USD 17.0 million) for the 2nd quarter 2004. EBITDA was KD 6.7 million (USD 22.8 million), versus KD 2.5 million (USD 8.5 million) in the 2nd quarter 2004. The net attributable profit to Wataniya Telecom from Asia-Cell in Q2 is KD 0.2 million (USD 0.7 million).

Algeria: The Algerian mobile market continued growing at a torrid pace as competition has opened the market for mobile communications. Nedjma continued its rapid network deployment and is on target to cover all 48 Wilayas by the end of the year. Revenues for the 2nd quarter of 2005 were KD 10.6 million (USD 36.1 million). EBITDA was KD 0.1 million (USD 0.3 million). The net attributable loss to Wataniya Telecom in Q2 is KD 2.7 million (USD 9.2 million).





The Company's share price as of June 30, 2005 was KD 1.940, giving a Kuwait Stock Market valuation for NMTC (Wataniya Telecom) of KD 846.6 million (USD 2.88 Billion). Consolidated earnings per share for the 1st half year 2005 were 60 fils.

-Ends-

About Wataniya Telecom:
Commercially launched in December 1999, Wataniya Telecom is part of Kuwait Projects Company (KIPCO), and has been a driving force in increasing the mobile communications market in Kuwait to more than 80 per cent of the population. Wataniya Telecom is actively expanding its presence in the region and is currently serving more than 4 million customers in countries with a combined total population exceeding 92 million.

Wataniya Telecom has operations in Kuwait, Iraq, Tunisia, Algeria, Maldives and most recently Saudi Arabia. The company provides a wide range of leading-edge wireless voice and data services, delivered with high quality, designed to cater to the demand of today's discerning customer.

About Wataniya International:
Wataniya International is responsible for leading the pursuit of global expansion opportunities, as well as leveraging technical, financial and commercial synergies within the Wataniya Telecom group of mobile operators.

For further information, please contact:
Darren Walker
Director of Communications & Investor Relations
Wataniya International FZ-LLC
2nd Floor, Showtime Building
Dubai Media City
Dubai,
UAE
Office: + 9714 367 2338
Fax: +9714 390 8000
E-mail: dwalker@wataniya.com
Website: http://www.wataniya.com

For Media Inquiries:
Wataniya Telecom
AbdulAziz Abdullah Al Balool,
PR Manager,
Wataniya Telecom (NMTC)
PO Box 613,
Safat 13007,
Kuwait
Tel: +965 243 5500
Fax: +965 243 6600
Email: abalool@wataniya.com

Spot On Public Relations
Dubai Regional
Mai Abaza Alexander McNabb
E-mail: maia@spotonpr.com
E-mail: alexm@spotonpr.com
Tel: +971 4 349 1686
Fax: +971 4 349 3245

© Press Release 2005