THE 500 MOST INFLUENTIAL MUSLIMS - CESD

ScholarlyCentral AmericaEL SAVADORqattan, dr ahmadQattan is a Muslim convert of Palestinian origin. He is the co-founder of the Arab Islamic Centerin Salvador. Qattan has been an educator and da’wa activist for the past 17 years, and has publishedmore than 100,000 copies of an introductory text on Islam, which has been read by an estimated250,000 people.MEXICOrojas, isaRojas is a da’wa activist and author of numerous articles about Islam in Spanish and French. He isalso a student of religion at Al Madina University, Saudi Arabia. Around 4 million people or morehave read his articles and translations which have been published on various Islamic websites. Heis one of the writers and editors at Islamweb.net.South AmericaARGENTINAgarcia, prof. muhammad isaGarcia was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina. He studied Arabic, Islamic studies and theology atUmm Al Qura University in Mecca. He is a specialist in the origins of prophetic tradition. Garciahas translated numerous books, with many only available to a Spanish-speaking readership in histranslation. He is also the author of a series named ‘Know Islam’.CHILEtorres, sheikh ismailIsmail Torres is a distinguished sheikh and da’wa activist in Chile. The Muslim community inChile remains a small but growing pocket in South America, with communities in Santiago,Temuco and Iquique.COLOMBIAal colombi, dawood abdl ghafurAl Colombi is one of the most well-respected Muslim scholars in Colombia. He is the mostactive and influential da’wa activist in Colombia, participating in the conversions of over 1000people. He is the founder of a mosque in the city of Pereira and of the Centro Cultural IslamicoColombian da’wa project. Al Colombi hosts conferences and awareness lectures for Muslims andnon-Muslims, and is acknowledged for his talent for conveying the principles of Islam to non-Muslims. He is also the author of several articles in Spanish and has created the only library ofIslamic books in Colombia.ECUADORdassum, dr laylaDassum is the vice president and co-founder of the Islamic Centre of Ecuador and the director ofthe Muslim Ladies Committee. A well-known da’wa activist in Ecuador, Dassum hosts conferencesand awareness lectures locally and internationally and teaches women about Islam and the Qur’an.Dassum has represented her country in many conferences in the Islamic world.105