Al-Qaradawi, Yousuf Abdulla

Yusuf al-Qaradawi (Arabic: يوسف القرضاوي‎, translit. Yūsuf al-Qaraḍāwī; or Yusuf al-Qardawi; born 9 September 1926) is an Egyptian Islamic theologian based in Doha, Qatar, and chairman of the International Union of Muslim Scholars. He got influences from Hassan al Banna, Abul A'la Maududi and Naeem Siddiqui. He is best known for his programme الشريعة والحياة, al-Sharīʿa wa al-Ḥayāh ("Sharia and Life"), broadcast on Al Jazeera, which has an estimated audience of 40-60 million worldwide. He is also known for IslamOnline, a website he helped to found in 1997 and for which he serves as chief religious scholar. Al-Qaradawi's books can be found worldwide in local bookstores. He has published more than 120 books, including his famous The Lawful and the Prohibited in Islam and Islam: The Future Civilization. He has also received eight international prizes for his contributions to Islamic scholarship, and is considered one of the most influential such scholars living today. Al-Qaradawi has long had a prominent role within the intellectual leadership of the Muslim Brotherhood, an Egyptian political organization, although he has repeatedly stated that he is no longer a member and twice (in 1976 and 2004) turned down offers for the official role in the organization. Some of al-Qaradawi's views, such as his condoning of Palestinian suicide bombings against Israelis, have caused reactions from governments in the West: he was refused an entry visa to the United Kingdom in 2008, and barred from entering France in 2012. As of 2004, al-Qaradawi was a trustee of the Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies. He also served as a consultant scholar for an epic movie in English on Muhammad, and a 30-part series on the second caliph 'Umar b. al-Khaṭṭāb. Also in February 2009, Barrie M. Osborne, producer of The Matrix and The Lord of the Rings film trilogies, was attached to produce a new film about the Islamic Prophet Muhammad. The film is to be financed by Qatar and will be supervised by al-Qaradawi. The filming only started in 2015 after rigorous consultations with leading Islamic scholars for almost 6 years. It is expected to be aired in 2018. The budget on this film is US$1 billion