When Malegaon rolled out red carpet for Dr. Abdullah Omar Naseef
Former Chief of Muslim World League, President of King Abdulaziz University and the brain behind a number of key projects and initiatives, including the exemplary Hajj crowd management system, Dr. Abdullah Omar Naseef breathed his last aged 86 in Jeddah on Sunday October 12, 2025
[Dr. Abdullah Omar Naseef receiving King Faisal Award]
Dr. Abdullah Omar Naseef is no more. Former Chief of Muslim World League, President of King Abdulaziz University and the brain behind a number of key projects and initiatives, including the exemplary Hajj crowd management system, Dr. Abdullah Omar Naseef breathed his last aged 86 in Jeddah on Sunday October 12, 2025.
Dr Abdullah Omar Naseef’s funeral prayer was offered at Al-Juffali Mosque after Asr prayer Sunday. He was later buried at Al-Assad Cemetery in Jeddah.
Dr. Abdullah Omar Naseef was born in Jeddah in 1939. During his long career, Dr Abdullah Naseef held several key positions and also served as Secretary General of the Muslim World League (MWL) and Chairman of World Muslim Congress.
As Secretary General of the Muslim World League from 1983-1993, he extensively travelled all across the world to study the conditions of Muslim minorities and solve their problems.
Dr Abudllah Omar Naseef in Malegaon
During the same period, he visited Malegaon on May 01, 1992 leading an extraordinary delegation of Muslim scholars and Arab dignitaries.
After arrival in Mumbai by air, Dr Naseef travelled to Malegaon by road with Maulana Mukhtar Ahmed Nadvi, renowned Islamic Scholar, Founder of Jamia Mohammadia Mansoora Malegaon, former Vice President of All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) and his host in Malegaon.
“A huge crowd had gathered on the two sides of the road from Girna Bridge to Jamia Mohammadia Mansoora to greet Dr Naseef and the members of his delegation”, Abdul Qayyum Faizee, General Secretary of Jamiat Ahle Hadees Maharashtra at that time, told ummid.com.
“Qari Abdus Samad led the crowd, standing along the Malegaon-Manmad Road and repeating the chants of Ahlan w Sahlan Marhaba to greet Dr Naseef and other guests”, Abdul Qayyum Faizee recalled.
“The grand welcome was indeed heart-warming for the onlookers as well as the visiting guests", he added.
Abdul Qayyum Faizee said after offering Friday prayers at Masjid Ayesha Al Duaij in Mansoora, Dr Naseef and his delegation took a tour of Malegaon and also visited Jamiatul Huda.
“During his day-long visit to Malegaon, Dr Abdullah Omar Naseef’s focus of discussion was the social, educational and economic empowerment of Muslims”, he recalled.
Dr Abudllah Omar Naseef’s Mumbai and Bhiwandi connection
Dr Abudllah Omar Naseef’s mother was sister of Islamic Scholar Maulana Abdus Samad Sharafuddin. Abdus Samad Sharafuddin was a publisher of Islamic books, owning a printing press in Bhiwandi and a book shop in Mumbai. Sharafuddin and Sons at Mumbai’s iconic Mohammad Ali Road is still a one stop shop for rare books.
Maulana Abdus Samad Sharafuddin had formidable connections with Mumbai’s elites. When Saudi King Saud bin Abdulaziz visited Bombay in 1955, on his way to Jama Masjid Ahle Hadees Mominpura, he suddenly asked his convoy to halt at Abdus Samad Sharafuddin’s home.
“His visit to Maulana Abdus Samad Sharafuddin’s home was unscheduled and hence left the local security personnel puzzled”, Abdul Qayyum Faizee recalled.
King Saud’s visit to Dr Naseef’s maternal uncle Maulana Abdus Samad Sharafuddin’s home in Mumbai is reminiscent of the special relation Dr Naseef and his family had with the Saudi Royal family.
Dr Abdullah Omar Naseef’s Contributions
After completing primary education, Dr Naseef obtained bachelor's degree in Chemistry from King Saud University in 1964. He was holder of a doctorate degree in Geology from the University of Leeds in 1971. He started his career as a Teacher first at King Saud University in Riyadh and then at King Abdulaziz University in Jeddah. He continued to rise through the academic ranks, until becoming a Professor and later appointed as the President King Abdulaziz University. He was also a fellow of the Geological Society of London and the Geological Society of America.
Dr Naseef also served as Chief Scout and member of the Board of Directors of the Saudi Arabian Boy Scouts Association, which he joined in 1956. Later, he served as President of the International Union of Muslim Scouts and member of the World Scout Committee.
Besides serving as the Secretary General of the Makkah-based Muslim World League, Dr Naseef also held several key positions - both in Saudi Arabia and abroad. His contributions were highlighted in the Islamic Relief Project, known as "Sanabel Al-Khair," which aims to save the poor masses in the far reaches of the Islamic world from poverty, ignorance, and disease. He represented Saudi Arabia in several international conferences and forums, defending Islamic causes and calling for dialogue and understanding between peoples and religions.
Dr Naseef later also served as Vice President of the Saudi Shoura Council and carved his niche as a model of wisdom, broad vision, and service to the national interests. The positions held by Dr. Naseef include vice chairman of the Saudi National Dialogue Committee for 10 years, Secretary General of the International Islamic Council for Call and Relief from 2008 to 2019, Chairman of the Board of the International Islamic Relief Organization in 2000, President of the World Muslim Congress, Vice Chairman of the Saudi National Dialogue Committee for 10 years, and President of the Abdullah bin Omar Nassif Charitable Foundation.
Among the Arab and international positions that he held include Member of the Board of Trustees of the University of Dar es Salaam in New Mexico, the Islamic American College in Chicago, the Royal Moroccan Academy, the Islamic Academy in Cambridge, and Vice President of the International Islamic University in Islamabad. He chaired the Boards of Trustees of the Islamic Cultural Center in Geneva, the Institute for the History of Arabic and Islamic Sciences at the University of Frankfurt, the Islamic Cultural Center in Sydney, the International Islamic University in Chittagong, Darul Ihsan University in Bangladesh, and the Islamic University in Niger.
British-Pakistani writer Ziauddin Sardar in his book “Desperately Seeking Paradise: Journeys of a Sceptical Muslim” has described at length how Dr Abdullah Omar Naseef was instrumental in fomalising a system to manage crowd during Hajj, the annual ritual when over 2 million Muslims from around the world throng the Two Holy Cities – Makkah and Madinah.
Dr. Naseef was awarded with the King Faisal Prize for Service to Islam in 1991 and the King Abdulaziz Medal of the First Class in 2004. In 1983 Nasseef was awarded the Bronze Wolf, the only distinction of the World Organization of the Scout Movement, awarded by the World Scout Committee, for exceptional services to world Scouting.
Condolences
Condolences are pouring in from all across the world after the demise of Dr Abdullah Omar Naseef.
“The Departure of a Man Who Shaped a Civilization and Human Presence for Muslims Across the Globe”, Faid Mohammed Said, University Professor and a Member of the European Council for Muslim Leaders, said condoling the death of Dr Naseef.
“A great friend of the UK Muslim community”, the Muslim Council of Britain (MCB) in its condolence message on the passing of Dr Abdullah Omar Nassef.
In his condolence message, The Mufti of Uganda, Sheikh Shaban Ramadhan Mubaje, paid tribute to the late Dr. Abdallah Omar Naseef, recognising his key role in rebuilding and strengthening the country’s Muslim community in the 1980s and 1990s.
“One of the finest persons lived in Saudi Arabia. May Allah be pleased with the departed”, Dr Khaled Almaeena, Former Editor in Chief Arab News and Saudi Gazette, paid tribute to Dr Abdullah Omar Naseef in these words.
[With inputs from Saudi Gazette. The writer, Aleem Faizee, is Founder Editor of ummid.com. Aleem Faizee has also worked as Researcher at Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) and with Action Aid for its research work published as “BROKEN PROMISES -A study on the socio-economic status of Indian Muslims: Seven years post Sachar”. Aleem Faizee's research work “Mollywood: The Rise and Fall of a Subaltern Cinema” is part of the book “Creative Industries in India” published by Routledge India of Taylor and Francis Group, London. A prolific writer, Aleem Faizee has also worked with The Times of India and The Milli Gazette as Freelance Journalist for over 10 years. Aleem Faizee is also a Social Entrepreneur and heads Malegaon Industries and Manufacturers Association (MIMA) and Samara's Education and Welfare Association (SEWA)]
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