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Syrian Islamic scholar of Salafism (1886–1969) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Muhibb al-Din al-Khatib (Arabic: محب الدين الخطيب, romanized: Muḥibb al-Dīn al-Khaṭīb; 1886 – 30 December 1969) was a Syrian Islamic scholar of Salafism.[1][2][3][4] He was the maternal uncle of Ali al-Tantawi[5] and was the author of the "hate filled" anti-Shia pamphlet entitled al-Khutut al-Arida (The broad lines of the foundations upon which the religion of the Imami Twelver Shiites is based).[6] He has been described as "one of the most influential anti-Shiite polemicists of the twentieth century."[7]
In 1916, he was made the editor of Al Qibla, the official newspaper of Sharif Hussein.[8]
Born in Damascus in July 1886 Al Khatib was the son of a Damascene ulema Abu Al Fath Al Khatib.[9][10] Al Khatib received secondary education in his hometown and attended Maktab Anbar, a very well-known educational institute, where he studied modern sciences, Ottoman Turkish, French and some Persian.[10] During his studies in Damascus he became one of the pupils of Salafi scholar Tahir Al Jazairi.[10] Al Khatib continued his education at a state school in Beirut.[9][10] In 1905 he went to Istanbul to study law and literature[11] and also, founded the Society of Arab Awakening with Aref Al Shihabi there.[9]
In 1907 Al Khatib moved to Yemen where he served as a translator for the British consulate[10] and became a member of Rashid Rida's Ottoman Council Society based in Cairo.[9] Al Khatib returned to Istanbul in 1909 and established a literary society.[9] He was named the assistant general secretary of the Decentralization Party which was founded in Syria in 1913.[9] Next year while he was going to Najd and Iraq he was arrested by the British and deported to Basra where he was jailed until July 1916.[9] Following his release he first went to Egypt and then to Mecca where he met Sharif Hussain and cofounded a newspaper entitled Al Qibla in 1916 which he edited until 1920.[12] In November 1917 Al Khatib launched another weekly newspaper, Al Irtiqa.[9] In 1919 he moved to Damascus where he participated the Arab Youth association and became a member of its central committee.[9] The same year he also served as the editor-in-chief of the official newspaper Al Asima.[13]
Al Khatib settled in Cairo in 1921 as result of his clash with the King of Syria and Iraq Emir Faisal.[9] He was appointed editor-in-chief of Al Ahram and served in the post for five years.[9] He and another Syrian émigré Abdul Fattah Qattan established a publishing company, Salafi Publishing House, and a bookstore with the same name in Cairo.[10] Al Katib launched Al Zahra and Al Fath magazines.[14] In 1928 he assumed an editorial role for another magazine, Al Minhaj, which was banned by the government in 1930.[15]
Khatib also published a book, Al Khuttut al-’Arida li al Shi‘a al Ithna ‘Ashiriyya (Arabic: Petitions against the Twelve Shiites).[16]
Al Khatib was an Arab nationalist[11] and was part of Arabist-Salafi circles in Cairo.[15] He died in Cairo in December 1969.[9][17]
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