HH Shaikh Mohammed bin Salman attends the 16th edition of the Syed Junaid Alam International Quran Award

Manama, Nov. 26 (BNA): His Highness Shaikh Mohammed bin Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, today attended the closing ceremony of the 16th edition of the Syed Junaid Alam International Quran Award, held under his patronage at the Ahmed Al Fateh Islamic Center. During the ceremony, organised by the Holy Quran Custody Society (HQCS), HH Shaikh Mohammed highlighted HM the King’s continued support to the service of the Holy Quran, noting the importance of events which act as an educational platform aimed at spreading knowledge of the noble teachings of Islam, as well as the correct recitation, tajwid and memorisation of the Holy Quran. HH Shaikh Mohammed added that competitions in Islamic knowledge provide a conducive environment which fosters competition and motivation, allowing participants to further enhance their understanding of both the Quran and Islam. The closing ceremony began with a statement delivered by the HQCS Board Chairman, Ishaq Rashid Al Kooheji, in which he highlighted HM the King’s continued support to events that aim to further enhance the teachings of Islam and the Quran. Al Kooheji futher expressed gratitude to HH Shaikh Mohammed for the generous patronage of the event, and welcomed guests and participants at the award ceremony. Al Kooheji also noted the support provided by the Ministry of Justice, Islamic Affairs and Endowments and by the family of Syed Junaid Alam, who have contributed tremendously to the award, which was launched sixteen years ago, with the aim of serving the holy Quran and its teachings. Al Kooheji underscored the Kingdom’s leading role in supporting Islamic studies, institutions and projects that aim to serve the faith across various fields. The ceremony then proceeded with the recitation of the holy verses of the Quran by three contestants, Ebrahim Ayammudin from the Russian Federation, Mohammed Sameer Mujahid from Bahrain, and Elyas Hajari from Morocco, who stunned the audience with their recitation skills. The Chairman of the High Organising Committee of the Junaid Award, Abdulghani Al-Omari then delivered a speech, in which he announced the names of the winners in the category of memorisation of the Holy Quran, as follows: 1. Ali Habib Al Shahoubi – Libya 2. Yahya Bilal Yousif – Bahrain 3. Mohammed Isa Haj Asaad – Syria 4. Mohammed Balu Abu Baker – Nigeria 5. Elyas Najeeb Hajari – Morroco Al-Omari then announced the winners of the recitation and good performance category as follows: 1. Mohammed Samir Mujahid – Bahrain 2. Ahmed Mash-hoot Abdulshafi – Egypt 3. Abdulkarim Al Rai – Turkey 4. Ebrahim Khalid Abd-Yahya – Palestine 5. Ahmed Edrees Al Sumaihi – Morroco His Highness Shaikh Mohammed distributed the awards to the winners, congratulating their outstanding level of proficiency and the impressive competition demonstrated during the recital and memorisation of the holy versus of the Quran. HH Shaikh Mohammed bin Salman was presented with a commemorative gift by the Junaid Alam family, in honour of his generous patronage of this event and his continuing support towards the Islamic faith and its teachings. This year’s event witnessed the participation of 140 participants from 70 countries, who competed for four consecutive days to win the prizes of the competition. Al Omari concluded the event by announcing that next year’s competition will see an increase in participants to 420 from 85 countries and will be held in two stages.