THE 500 MOST INFLUENTIAL MUSLIMS - CESD

ScholarlyIRAQfayadh, his eminence grand ayatollah mohammad ishaqGrand Ayatollah Fayadh, originally from Afghanistan, is one of the four marjas of the HawzaSeminary in Najaf, Iraq—one of the two most important seats of learning in Twelver Shi’ism.Fayadh is known for his quietist approach to politics and is well-respected especially amongst theShi’a population of South Asia. It has been speculated that Fayadh is the frontrunner to succeedGrand Ayatollah Ali al Sistani at the highest position of political and patriarchal leadership in Iraq.hakim, his eminence grand ayatollah mohammed saidGrand Ayatollah Hakim is one of the four marjas of the Hawza Seminary in Najaf, Iraq, andaccordingly is one of Iraq’s most important Shi’a clerics. His family is very prominent in Iraq,holding key positions in Shi’a social and religious organizations and also in government. Hakimleads around 5 percent of the Iraqi Shi’a population. His influence stems partly from his relationshipto Grand Ayatollah Mohsen al Hakim, a former religious leader of the Twelver Shi’a in Iraq.al najafi, dr al sheikh ali bashir [new]Sheikh al Najafi is the son of Grand Ayatollah Bashir al Najafi and a leading Shi’a scholar in Iraq.He often represents the Hawza Seminary at international conferences and serves as the spokesmanof the Grand Ayatollahs, who traditionally refrain from addressing the media individually.al najafi, his eminence grand ayatollah bashirGrand Ayatollah Bashir al Najafi is one of the four marjas of the Hawza Seminary in Najaf, Iraq,and one of Iraq’s most powerful Shi’a clerics. As a marja of the Hawza in Najaf, Iraq’s premier Shi’ainstitution, Najafi holds a position of immense authority. Najafi, originally from Pakistan, holdsless sway amongst Iraq’s population than the other marjas but has significant clout in South Asia.al sadr, his eminence ayatollah al faqih seyyed hussein ismailAyatollah al Faqih Seyyed Hussein Ismail al Sadr is the most senior Shi’a cleric in Baghdad, Iraq.He heads the Ayatollah Seyyed Hussain Ismail al Sadr Foundation Trust, which runs humanitarian,development, and peace and reconciliation projects in Iraq. His role as a social leader andhumanitarian has increased significantly during the recent hostilities in Iraq.JORDANkhasawneh, his eminence sheikh abdul karim [new]Sheikh Khasawneh was appointed by royal decree to the post of grand mufti of the HashemiteKingdom of Jordan in February 2010, upon the resignation of the former grand mufti, Sheikh DrNuh Ali Salman al Qudah. Sheikh Khasawneh is the former mufti of the Jordanian Armed Forces.al qudah, his eminence sheikh dr nuh ali salmanSheikh al Qudah is the former grand mufti of Jordan and maintains influence in legal and religiouscircles. He has held other notable positions in the past including Chief Islamic Justice of Jordan. Heis also formerly a religious leader in the Jordanian army with the rank of Major General in 1992.LEBANONQabbani, His Eminence Dr Mohammad RashidMohammad Rashid Qabbani is the grand mufti of Lebanon and hence the country’s leading Sunnischolar. Qabbani speaks out regularly against sectarianism and violence.MOROCCOabdul-rahman, prof. dr tahaAbdul-Rahman is a Moroccan philosopher famous for his work in trying to create an ethicalhumanistic modernism on the basis of the ethics and values of Islam. He has taught logic inMuhammad V University for over 30 years. Abdul-Rahman has won the Moroccan Book Prizetwice, and was awarded the ISESCO Prize for Islamic Philosophy in 2006. He is the president ofthe Wisdom Circle of Thinkers, Morocco, and a member of the International Union of MuslimScholars.98