Usama al-Abd (also spelled: Osama al-Abd; ar, أسامة العبد) is a former president of

Al-Azhar University , image = جامعة_الأزهر_بالقاهرة.jpg , image_size = 250 , caption = Al-Azhar University portal , motto = , established = *970/972 first foundat ...

Cairo, Egypt Cairo ( ; ar, القاهرة, al-Qāhirah, ) is the capital of Egypt and its largest city, home to 10 million people. It is also part of the largest urban agglomeration in Africa, the Arab world and the Middle East: The Greater Cairo metro ...

Biography

Al-Abd is a 1975 graduate of

Al-Azhar University , image = جامعة_الأزهر_بالقاهرة.jpg , image_size = 250 , caption = Al-Azhar University portal , motto = , established = *970/972 first foundat ...

. After serving for a stint as a teacher at Al-Azhar, he worked as an Attorney General for 10 years. In 1981, he earned a M.A. in Comparative

Fiqh ''Fiqh'' (; ar, فقه ) is Islamic jurisprudence. Muhammad-> Companions-> Followers-> Fiqh. The commands and prohibitions chosen by God were revealed through the agency of the Prophet in both the Quran and the Sunnah (words, deeds, and ...

from Al-Azhar and in 1985, he completed a PhD in the same subject. Thereafter, he returned to academia and was appointed Professor of Shariah and Law again at Al-Azhar University. In 1988, he moved to Kuwait where he taught Islamic law. In 2003, he returned to Egypt where he was appointed Vice President of Al-Azhar University; in 2011, he was appointed President of Al-Azhar University.Gateway to Divine Mercy Project: Professor Dr Usama al-Abd
retrieved June 1, 2013 In April 2013, Al Azhar University's Council of Senior Scholars decided to hold elections to replace Al-Abd after a major food poisoning incident at Al-Azhar University's student hostel. He was later allowed to stay after hiring a new catering company.Al Monitor: "Al-Azhar denies siding with Egyptian government"
November 2013 In May 2014, Al-Abd announced that Al-Azhar University punished 1,301 students for their participation in anti-coup protests of which 131 were expelled outright from the university, 150 expelled from their dormitories, and 750 were referred to disciplinary boards.Middle East Monitor: "Al-Azhar University expels 1,031 students"
11 May 2014 Al-Abd stated that primary goal of the university protests was to disrupt studying and denied siding with Egyptian government headed by

Abdel Fattah el-Sisi Abdel Fattah Saeed Hussein Khalil el-Sisi; (born 19 November 1954) is an Egyptian politician and retired military officer who has served as the sixth and current president of Egypt since 2014. Before retiring as a general in the Egyptian mil ...

. Al-Abd also stated the

Muslim Brotherhood The Society of the Muslim Brothers ( ar, جماعة الإخوان المسلمين'' ''), better known as the Muslim Brotherhood ( ', is a transnational Sunni Islamist organization founded in Egypt by Islamic scholar and schoolteacher Hassan ...

was an exclusionary group hostile to the sheikh of Al Azhar University,

Ahmed el-Tayeb Ahmed Mohamed Ahmed El-Tayeb ( ar, أحمد محمد أحمد الطيب) (born 6 January 1946) is an Egyptian Islamic scholar and the current Grand Imam of al-Azhar, Al-Azhar Al Sharif and former president of al-Azhar University. He was appoin ...

, and solely dedicated to returning to power in Egypt without consideration for dissent. Although some Brotherhood members were on the Al-Azhar University faculty, Al-Abd maintains the university will continue to adhere to "moderate and enlightened ideas and always rejects extremist ideas.” Al-Abd is fluent in

Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic languages, Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C ...

and

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Abd, Usama Living people Al-Azhar University alumni Egyptian Sunni Muslim scholars of Islam Egyptian theologians Year of birth missing (living people)