Saudi Gazette report

RIYADH — The preliminary lists of those who were granted Saudi citizenship following the issuance of royal orders by Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman encompass all the vital fields of Saudi life.

Granting of the citizenship was in recognition of their distinguished services and outstanding contributions in all major walks of life through decades-long dedications and relentless efforts that qualified them to attain a distinguished status in the Saudi society.

The list of those who were granted citizenship included 27 renowned Islamic scholars, eminent physicians and well known academics, according to a report in Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper.

The scholars included those who involved in framing and approving the historic Makkah Document. At the international conference of Islamic scholars, organized by Muslim World League (MWL) in May 2019, King Salman presented the document, which was signed by more than 1,200 Islamic scholars and 4500 intellectuals from 139 countries and 27 Muslim schools of thought.

President of the World Bosniak Congress and Former Grand Mufti of Bosnia and Herzegovina Mustafa Ceric is one among the scholars who were granted citizenship.

The scholars include Hussein Al-Daoudi, chairman of the Scandinavian Council for Relations; Dr. Muhammad Nimr El-Sammak, secretary general of the National Islamic-Christian Committee for Dialogue, Lebanon and he is considered one of the leading Arab thinkers; Dr. Radwan al-Sayed, researcher in Islamic Thought Studies, and winner of the King Faisal International Prize in the field of Islamic studies.

All these scholars are members of the MWL Supreme Council and they ratified the Makkah Document. Other scholars are Abdullah Saleh Abdullah, a leading Iraqi academic and historian specialized in the history of the Kingdom and the Gulf in general, and Sayyed Muhammad Al-Husseini, secretary general of the Arabic Islamic Council of Lebanon, and an eminent Shiite scholar.

Saudi Arabia also granted citizenship to a group of distinguished medical personalities in their respective fields and they are:

Dr. Emad Muhammad Talijeh, renowned infectious diseases consultant, who published more than 87 scientific papers.

Dr. Farouq Oweida, consultant cardiothoracic surgeon, who worked as a consultant for cardiac surgery at the National Guard Hospital in Riyadh, and currently working as a consultant for heart surgery and head of the cardiac surgery Department at Saud Al Babtain Center. He performed more than 5,000 open-heart surgeries at Saud Al-Babtain Center.

Dr. Imad Uddin Najeh Ezzat Kanaan, head of the Department of Neurology at King Faisal Specialist Hospital, and he is considered one of the most famous neurosurgeons in the world. He was nominated by the Canadian Academy as the 16 best surgeons in the world.

Dr.Khaled Hamwi: Deputy director for Clinical Excellence in the First Health Cluster in Sharqia, and served as director of the Organ Transplant Center at King Fahd Specialist Hospital in Dammam.

Dr. Muhammad Ghayath Jamil: Medical director of the Intensive Care Unit for Organ Transplantation, medical director of the Telemedicine Unit, and former medical director of the Sleep Medicine Unit at King Faisal Specialist Hospital. He is former president of the Saudi Sleep Medicine Group and director of telemedicine program.

Dr. Walid Khaled Rashid: Consultant of hematology, stem cell transplantation and bone marrow transplantation at King Faisal Specialist Hospital.

Dr. Mustafa Abdullah Saleh: A renowned physician who presented 235 scientific papers in specialized international scientific fields.

Saudi citizenship has also been granted to a group of prominent academics and educational figures who have made significant contributions in their respective fields: They include several professors of King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals who made outstanding contributions in various academic specializations.

They are Bekir Yilbas, Ansir Merah, Mohammed Abdel Aziz Mustafa Habib, Mohamed Abdel Karim Antar, Tawfiq Abdo Saleh Awad, Ali Hussein Muqaibel, Azzedine Zerkin, Samir Mekid, Ayman Helmy Al-Maleh, Bassam El-Ali, Salaheldin El-Katatny and Mohamed Ahmed Nasr Eldin Mahmoud.

Hadi Mohamed Aqoun and Musa Qari Syed were also granted citizenship. Aqoun is holder of doctorate in electrical engineering from Washington University and he presented 37 research papers in international conferences.

Musa Qari Syed is a nuclear scientist with master’s degree in radiochemistry from the University of Iowa, and doctorates in Radiological Sciences from Ohio Medical College in Toledo, and in Higher Education Administration from Pennsylvania University. He served as consultant of several world universities including those in Saudi Arabia.