RIYADH: Saudi Arabia has appointed Sheikh Saleh bin Fawzan bin Abdullah Al-Fawzan as the kingdom’s new grand mufti, state media reported.
The Saudi Press Agency said the appointment came through a royal decree issued by King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud. Sheikh Al-Fawzan replaces the late Sheikh Abdulaziz Al-Sheikh, who passed away on September 23 after serving as grand mufti for over two decades.
Sheikh Al-Fawzan has been a member of the Ifta and the Permanent Committee for Scholarly Research since 1992. He is also part of the Council of Senior Scholars, according to the Saudi Gazette.
He has previously served on the Supervisory Committee for Preachers during Hajj, the Islamic Fiqh Council, and the Muslim World League.
Born in Al-Qassim in 1935, Sheikh Al-Fawzan studied in Buraidah and later graduated from the College of Shariah in Riyadh, earning a master’s and doctorate in fiqh. He also served as director of the Higher Institute of Judiciary.
The new grand mufti is an accomplished author and has hosted several radio programs, including the popular Nur Ala Al-Darb show.
Sheikh Al-Fawzan’s appointment was made on the recommendation of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the de facto ruler of Saudi Arabia, who has introduced wide-ranging reforms to diversify the economy of the world’s largest oil exporter.
