EGYPTIAN MALE QURAN RECITER, PAKISTANI FEMALE RECITER CHAMPIONS AT 52ND INTERNATIONAL TILAWAH

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 4 (Bernama) -- Egyptian Hani Abdel Aziz Ahmad and
Pakistan's Samia Khanan were respectively judged champion in the men and women's
category of the 52nd International Quran Reciters Assembly (Tilawah Al-Quran)held at
the Putra World Trade Centre, here, Tuesday night.

They each won US$10,000 (about RM31,975) in cash, a trophy, souvenir and
certificate of participation which were presented to them by the Malaysian King
Tuanku Mizan Zainal Abidin.

Hani scored 91.46 per cent of the marks and Samia, 91.08 per cent.

Malaysia's male reciter Wan Ainuddin Abdullah and Brunei's female reciter Dayang
Nurfaezah Emran were the runners-up in their respective categories, each taking
home US$7,000 (RM22,382), a souvenir and certificate of appreciation.

Third placed were Abdul Wadoud K. Esmail in the men's category and Monaifah A.
Bogabong Alawi in the women's category. Both are from the Philippines and they
each won US$4,000 (RM12,790), a souvenir and certificate of appreciation.

The other participants each received the consolation prize of US$1,500
(RM4,796), a souvenir and a certificate.

The theme for the eight-day tilawah from July 27 with 76 participants from 47
countries, was "Strengthening Brotherhood, Empowering the Ummah (Community).
Last year, there were 66 participants from 43 countries.

Four countries which took part in the tilawah for the first time this year were
Kazakhstan, Surinam, Zambia and Djibouti.

Hani said he was surprised with his win and regarded it as a gift from Allah,
while Samia too said she did not expect to win after taking part in the assembly
a number of times before.

Malaysia's Wan Ainuddin, who is an imam at the Section 14 mosque in Petaling
Jaya, said his runner-up position was very meaningful to him as it was his first
participation in the international tilawah.

Apart from that, he said, he was having a bad cold and fever for two days before
the final tonight.

The reciters were judged by a panel of 16 judges chaired by the
director-general of the Malaysian Islamic Development Department (Jakim), Wan
Mohamad Sheikh Abdul Aziz.
-- BERNAMA