Abdulaziz Al al-Sheikh عبد العزيز آل الشيخ | |
|---|---|
 Al al-Sheikh in 2012 | |
| Grand Mufti of Saudi Arabia | |
| In office 15 May 1999 – 23 September 2025 | |
| Preceded by | Ibn Baz |
| Succeeded by | Saleh al-Fawzan |
| Personal life | |
| Born | (1943-11-30)30 November 1943 Mecca, Saudi Arabia |
| Died | 23 September 2025(2025-09-23) (aged 81) Riyadh, Saudi Arabia |
| Alma mater | Imam Muhammad ibn Saud University |
| Religious life | |
| Religion | Islam |
| Denomination | Sunni |
| Lineage | Al al-Sheikh family |
| Jurisprudence | Hanbali |
| Creed | Athari |
| Movement | Salafism |
Abdulaziz bin Abdullah Al al-Sheikh[a] (30 November 1943 – 23 September 2025) was a Saudi Islamicscholar who served as the thirdGrand Mufti of Saudi Arabia from 1999 until his death in 2025.[1]
As such he was head of theCouncil of Senior Religious Scholars and its sub-committee, thePermanent Committee for Islamic Research and Issuing Fatwas.
Abdulaziz Al al-Sheikh was born inMecca, Saudi Arabia on 30 November 1943.[2] He was a member of theAl al-Sheikh family. In 1951, his father passed away when he was eight years old. At the age of 20 in 1963, he lost his vision. In 1969–70, he assumed leadership at theSheikh Muhammad bin Ibrahim Mosque in Dukhna, Riyadh. In 1979, he was appointed assistant professor at theCollege of Sharia, Mecca.
In 1995, he became the Deputy Grand Mufti, and in June 1999,King Fahd appointed Al al-Sheikh asGrand Mufti of Saudi Arabia, following the death of the previous Grand MuftiAbdulaziz bin Baz.[3]
In 2006, followingPope Benedict XVI'squotation of a Byzantine emperor in a lecture, the Grand Mufti called the Pope's statement "lies", adding that they "show that reconciliation between religions is impossible".[4]
In 2007, the Grand Mufti announced plans to demolish theGreen Dome and flatten the dome.[5]
On 15 March 2012, the Grand Mufti declared that, "All churches in theArabian Peninsula must be destroyed". This declaration caused criticism from some Christian officeholders.Roman Catholic bishops in Germany and Austria responded sharply to hisfatwa, concerned about the human rights of non-Muslims working in thePersian Gulf region.Russian OrthodoxMetropolitan Mark,Archbishop ofYegoryevsk, said the ruling was "alarming". Most of the world overlooked the statement.[6]Mehmet Görmez, the most senior imam inTurkey, blasted Al al-Sheikh's call to "destroy all the churches" in thePersian Gulf region, saying that the announcement totally contradicted the peaceful teachings of Islam. Görmez, the president ofDiyanet İşleri Başkanlığı (Presidency of Religious Affairs), said he could not accept Al al-Sheikh's fatwa, adding that it ran contrary to the centuries-old Islamic teachings of tolerance and the sanctity of institutions belonging to other religions.[7]
In April 2012, the Grand Mufti issued a fatwa allowing ten-year-old girls to marry, insisting that girls are ready for marriage by age 10 or 12: "Our mothers and grandmothers got married when they were barely 12. Good upbringing makes a girl ready to perform all marital duties at that age."[8]
In June 2013, Al al-Sheikh issued a fatwa demanding the destruction of statues of horses placed in a roundabout inJizan:[9] "The sculptures [must] be removed because they are a great sin and are prohibited underSharia".[10]
The Grand Mufti issued a fatwa on 12 September 2013 thatsuicide bombings are "great crimes" and bombers are "criminals who rush themselves to hell by their actions". He described suicide bombers as "robbed of their minds... who have been used (as tools) to destroy themselves and societies."[11]
In late August 2014, the Grand Mufti condemned theIslamic State of Iraq and the Levant andal-Qaeda saying, "Extremist and militant ideas and terrorism which spread decay on Earth, destroying human civilisation, are not in any way part of Islam, but are enemy number one ofIslam, and Muslims are their first victims".[12]
On 25 September 2015, one day after theMina crowd crush disaster which (according to the Associated Press) killed at least 1,399 foreign Muslims performingHajj, Al al-Sheikh publicly toldMuhammad bin Nayef, then-Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, that he was "not responsible for what happened", and "as for the things that humans cannot control, you are not blamed for them. Fate and destiny are inevitable." Prince Muhammad was alsothe country's interior minister, responsible for safety inMecca, and the Grand Mufti's words immunized the Crown Prince from possible public criticism withinSaudi Arabia, which set the official death toll for the Mina tragedy at fewer than 800 deaths.[13]
In January 2016, while answering a question on a television show in which he issues fatwas in response to viewers' queries on everyday religious matters, Al al-Sheikh ruled thatchess was forbidden in Islam because it constituted gambling, was a waste of time and money and a cause of hatred and enmity between the players.[14][15]
In September 2016, the Grand Mufti ruled that the Iranian Leadership is not Muslim and is the "son of themagi".[16][17]
In 2017, the Grand Mufti was on a list of religious scholars included on a death list by ISIS.[18]
in 2018, he was reported to have backed thedecision allowing women to drive.[19]
Abdulaziz Al al-Sheikh died inRiyadh on 23 September 2025, at the age of 81.[20][21] Hisfuneral prayer was held atImam Turki bin Abdullah Grand Mosque inRiyadh. Absentia funeral prayers were also held inMasjid al-Haram inMecca, led byBandar Baleela, and in theProphet's Mosque inMedina, led byAli al-Hudhayfi, as well as in all Mosques acrossSaudi Arabia by order of KingSalman bin Abdulaziz.[22] TheUAE Fatwa Council, through its chairman Abdullah ibn Bayyah, expressed condolences following his death.[23]
Saudi Arabia 's top cleric, Grand Mufti Sheik Abdul Aziz al-Asheik, gave a speech last October warning Saudis not to join unauthorized jihadist activities, a statement directed mainly at those considering going to Iraq to fight the American-led forces.
A pamphlet published in 2007 by the Saudi Ministry of Islamic Affairs, endorsed by Abdulaziz Al Sheikh, the Grand Mufti of Saudi Arabia, stated that "the green dome shall be demolished and the three graves flattened in the Prophet's Masjid".
| Religious titles | ||
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| Preceded by | Grand Mufti of Saudi Arabia 1999–2025 | Succeeded by |
| International | |
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| National | |
| Other | |
