Saudi Arabia’s Grand Mufti and Head of the Council of Senior Scholars, Sheikh Abdulaziz Al-Sheikh, passed away in Riyadh on Tuesday morning at the age of 82, the Royal Court has announced.
Funeral prayers for the late scholar will be held at the Imam Turki bin Abdullah Mosque in Riyadh after the Asr prayer on Tuesday. Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Salman, has also ordered funeral prayers in absentia at the Grand Mosque in Makkah, the Prophet’s Mosque in Madinah, and across all mosques in the Kingdom.
King Salman and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman extended condolences to the family of Sheikh Al-Sheikh, the Saudi people, and the wider Islamic world. “With the passing of Al-Sheikh, Saudi Arabia and the Islamic world have lost a distinguished scholar who made significant contributions to the service of Islam and Muslims,” the Royal Court said in a statement.
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Sheikh Al-Sheikh, who served as head of the General Presidency of Scholarly Research and Ifta, and the Supreme Council of the Muslim World League, was widely respected across the Muslim world. He was appointed Grand Mufti in June 1999 by King Fahd, succeeding Sheikh Abdul Aziz Ibn Baz.
Life and Career
Born on November 30, 1943, in Makkah, Sheikh Al-Sheikh memorized the Qur’an at an early age but lost his sight at 17. He studied at Imam Mohammad bin Saud Islamic University in Riyadh, graduating in 1965 with a specialization in Arabic and Islamic Shariah.
His teaching career began at the Imam al-Dawa Scholarly Institute in Riyadh before he later taught at the College of Shariah and the Higher Institute of Judiciary. Over the years, he served as imam at several prominent mosques, including Imam Turki bin Abdullah Mosque in Riyadh, and from 1982, he delivered the annual Arafat sermon at Namirah Mosque for 34 consecutive years.
In 1987, he was appointed to the Council of Senior Scholars and became a full-time member of the Permanent Committee for Scholarly Research and Ifta in 1991. He later rose to the position of Deputy Grand Mufti in 1995. Following the death of Sheikh Abdulaziz Ibn Baz in 1999, he was appointed Grand Mufti, a role he held for over two decades.
Sheikh Al-Sheikh’s passing marks the end of an era in Saudi Arabia’s religious establishment, where his influence shaped Islamic scholarship and guidance for millions of Muslims worldwide.