the 500 most influential muslims - The Royal Islamic Strategic ...

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HIS ExCELLENCY ABDULLAH GüL
President of Turkey
Abdullah Gül is the 11th president of the Republic of Turkey
and the first modern Turkish head-of-state from an
Islamic background. Facing intense secularist opposition
to his political career, Gül has maintained a focus on democratic
reform. As prime minister and subsequently as foreign
minister, Gül pursued a pro-active foreign policy and
largely succeeded in striking a balance between Turkey’s
traditional Western-anchored foreign policy priorities and
its new interests in the Middle East and the Muslim world.
Influence through Pragmatic Leadership
Gül's political influence in Turkey and abroad derives from his ability to reconcile the demands
of a predominantly religious electorate with those of the entrenched secularism of the Turkish
Republic. Together with Erdogan, Gül has worked to expand the sphere of democratic rights in
Turkey, which in turn have benefited the predominantly traditional and religious segments of
Turkish society. Gül continues to play a significant role in the current efforts to find a lasting
solution to Turkey’s Kurdish issue. Gül was also the first Turkish politician to visit Armenia.
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SHEIKH MOHAMMED ALI AL SABOUNI
Scholar of Tafsir
An internationally respected Islamic scholar of tafsir, or Qur’anic exegesis, Sheikh Mohammed
Ali al Sabouni is widely acclaimed for his short commentaries
of the Qur’an.
Popular Commentaries
Al Sabouni is influential because of his easy-to-read, simplified
commentaries of the Holy Qur’an, which are the
most popular modern commentaries in the world. They
are now thought of as some of the most popular short
commentaries in history after those of Jalalayn, Baydawi,
Ibn Kathir and Ibn Juzayy. One of his most influential commentaries
is the Tafsir Ayat Al Ahkam, an exploration of
the Qur’anic verses that pertain to legal rulings.
Country: Turkey
Date of Birth:
29 October 1950
Source of Influence: Political
Influence: Leads government of
71.5 million Turkish citizens
School of Thought: Traditional
Sunni
Country: Syria
Date of Birth: Not Available
Source of Influence: Scholarly
Influence: Significant scholarly
influence as the leading
contemporary key figure in
Qur’anic commentary (tafsir)
School of Thought: Traditional
Sunni, Hanafi
Traditional Authority
The Institute of Scientific Research and Revival of Islamic Heritage, Umm Al Qura University
in Mecca, Saudi Arabia—founded by King Abdul Aziz al Saud as part of the King Abdul Aziz
University in 1949—commissioned al Sabouni to investigate the ancient tafsir manuscript
of Abu Jaafar al Nahas (d. 949 CE/338AH). His landmark achievement of verifying the only
surviving manuscript of the text has come to fruition as a six volume work published by the
university.
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