The Grand Mufti of Saudi Arabia, Abdulaziz Bin Abdullah Al al-Sheikh, has passed away at the age of 84.
The Saudi News Agency reported the news of his demise this morning. The funeral prayer is scheduled to take place at the Imam Turki bin Abdullah Mosque in Riyadh later today.
The nation is grieving the loss of its prominent religious figure, with Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz ordering a special prayer to be held in his honor at the Grand Mosque in Mecca, the Prophet’s Mosque in Medina, and all mosques across the Kingdom.
The Crown Prince has offered his condolences as well. Apart from being the Grand Mufti, Abdulaziz Al Sheikh also held the position of Chairman of the General Presidency of Islamic Research and Ifta, with the status of a minister.
He was also the Head of the Council of Senior Scholars. Abdulaziz Al Sheikh, a member of the Al ash-Sheikh family, took over the leadership at the Sheikh Muhammad bin Ibrahim Mosque in Dukhna, Riyadh in 1970 and later became an assistant professor at the College of Sharia in Mecca.
He succeeded Muhammad Bin Ibrahim Al al-Sheikh and Abdulaziz Bin Baz as the third Grand Mufti of the Kingdom. A decade ago, he issued a ruling stating that chess was prohibited in Islam due to its association with gambling and fostering animosity among players.
Having lost his father when he was an orphan in 1951 and his eyesight in his twenties, Sheikh Al Sheikh persevered in his Sharia studies. Despite facing challenges, he became a respected figure in academic circles at various universities.