Mohamed Mustapha Ali Masfaka ( ar, محمد مصطفى علي مسفقة; born 1962), better known as Abu Ratib (), is a

Syria Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...

Nasheed A nasheed (Arabic: singular ', plural ', meaning: "chants") is a work of vocal music, partially coincident with hymns, that is either sung ''a cappella'' or with instruments, according to a particular style or tradition within Islam. Nasheed ...

singer Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or without ...

Islamic Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God (or '' Allah'') as it was revealed to Muhammad, the mai ...

and

Arabic music Arabic music or Arab music ( ar, الموسيقى العربية, al-mūsīqā al-ʿArabīyyah) is the music of the Arab world with all its diverse music styles and genres. Arabic countries have many rich and varied styles of music and also man ...

based on classical Arab poetry.

Early life

Masfaka was born in

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. From an early age, he was immersed in musical traditions of the Arab world. At a young age, he joined the Arab Music Institute in Aleppo, Syria where he studied musical notation (

Solfège In music, solfège (, ) or solfeggio (; ), also called sol-fa, solfa, solfeo, among many names, is a music education method used to teach aural skills, Pitch (music), pitch and sight-reading of Western classical music, Western music. Solfège is ...

) and learned to play the violin. Abu Ratib Masfaka studied broadcasting and television direction in

Amman Amman (; ar, عَمَّان, ' ; Ammonite language, Ammonite: 𐤓𐤁𐤕 𐤏𐤌𐤍 ''Rabat ʻAmān'') is the capital and largest city of Jordan, and the country's economic, political, and cultural center. With a population of 4,061,150 a ...

Jordan Jordan ( ar, الأردن; tr. ' ), officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan,; tr. ' is a country in Western Asia. It is situated at the crossroads of Asia, Africa, and Europe, within the Levant region, on the East Bank of the Jordan Rive ...

, and obtained experience in the broadcasting engineering.

Career

As Masfaka balanced music with a growing interest in Islam, his work moved in a spiritual direction. He joined the band of the singer Abi Dujanah for religious singing, until he founded Al-Huda band in 1981 and began issuing the albums of Islamic singing. In 1986, Al-Huda band developed to found Al-Huda Islamic Art. In 1991, he founded Al-Huda International Art Production. Masfaka is an active member of the Arabic arts community and is involved in numerous organizations to promote Islamic music and artist development worldwide. He has traveled over the U.S and abroad as a featured artist at community events in mosques and on college campuses. He is a member of Michigan-based Crescent Academy International, and aims to overcome negative impressions of Islam through his works such as a play about the

Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...

featuring the

Islamic prophet Prophets in Islam ( ar, الأنبياء في الإسلام, translit=al-ʾAnbiyāʾ fī al-ʾIslām) are individuals in Islam who are believed to spread God in Islam, God's message on Earth and to serve as models of ideal human behaviour. So ...

Muhammad Muhammad ( ar, مُحَمَّد; 570 – 8 June 632 Common Era, CE) was an Arab religious, social, and political leader and the founder of Islam. According to Muhammad in Islam, Islamic doctrine, he was a prophet Divine inspiration, di ...

which attracted a large non-Muslim audience. He is also head of the World Islamic Art League. Masfaka has often sung in support of human rights for the

occupied ' (Norwegian: ') is a Norwegian political thriller TV series that premiered on TV2 on 5 October 2015. Based on an original idea by Jo Nesbø, the series is co-created with Karianne Lund and Erik Skjoldbjærg. Season 2 premiered on 10 October 2 ...

Palestinian people Palestinians ( ar, الفلسطينيون, ; he, פָלַסְטִינִים, ) or Palestinian people ( ar, الشعب الفلسطيني, label=none, ), also referred to as Palestinian Arabs ( ar, الفلسطينيين العرب, label=non ...

Awards

In 2006, Masfaka was awarded the World Youth Prize for Islamic Work in the field of Inshad (religious singing).

Arrest and deportation

In 2010, he was arrested when he returned from

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

, due to his involvement with the

Holy Land Foundation The Holy Land Foundation (HLF) was the largest Islamic charity in the United States. Headquartered in Richardson, Texas, and run by Palestinian-Americans, it was originally known as Occupied Land Fund. The organization's mission was to "find and ...

when the case of the holy land 5 concluded in 2008 with their imprisonment. Masfaka who pleaded guilty to making false statements during his naturalization proceedings, was later deported to the country of his choice.

Personal life

Masfaka is married to Batoul Qaweqji and has five daughters, Ayah, Nour, Sana, Hiba, and Sama Masfaka.

References

External links

* * * 1962 births Living people Date of birth missing (living people) Syrian Muslims Syrian emigrants to the United States 20th-century Syrian male singers Performers of Islamic music Musicians from Aleppo Salahaddin University-Erbil alumni University of Jordan alumni Mohammed V University alumni 21st-century Syrian male singers {{Syria-singer-stub