Who was Sheikh Abdulaziz Al-Asheikh, Saudi Arabia’s late Grand Mufti?

Saudi Arabia announced on Tuesday the death of Sheikh Abdulaziz bin Abdullah Al-Asheikh, the kingdom's Grand Mufti and head of the Council of Senior Scholars, at the age of 82.

Funeral prayers were held at Imam Turki bin Abdullah Mosque in Riyadh, with King Salman ordering absentee prayers at the Grand Mosque in Makkah, the Prophet's Mosque in Madinah, and in mosques across the kingdom.

Al-Asheikh had held the position of Grand Mufti since 1999, serving as the official interpreter of Sharia law and chair of the Council of Senior Scholars and the Permanent Committee for Research and Fatwas.

His death ends more than two decades as the highest-ranking state-backed religious authority in Saudi Arabia.

Education and religious career 

Born in Mecca in 1943, Al-Asheikh belonged to the family of Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab, the 18th-century cleric whose alliance with the Al-Saud dynasty shaped the kingdom's religious and political foundations.

He studied under several Saudi clerics, including former Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdulaziz ibn Baz.

After graduating from the College of Sharia at Imam Muhammad ibn Saud Islamic University in 1963, he worked as a teacher at religious institutes and later as a lecturer at the Higher Institute of Judiciary in Riyadh.

Al-Asheikh became a familiar face through his long service as khatib (preacher) at the Namira Mosque in Arafat, where he delivered the Hajj sermon annually for 35 years.

In 1996, he was appointed deputy Grand Mufti, and in 1999, following the death of Ibn Baz, he became Grand Mufti of Saudi Arabia.

From then until his death, Al-Asheikh presided over the kingdom's official religious bodies, issuing fatwas (religious rulings) and providing rulings largely aligned with state policy.

His position was closely tied to the Saudi monarchy's efforts to maintain clerical legitimacy while consolidating political control.

Loyal to MbS

Al-Asheikh's authority reflected the long-standing relationship between the Al-Saud ruling family and the Al-Sheikh clerical establishment. While his lineage as a descendant of Ibn Abd al-Wahhab carried symbolic weight, his role increasingly became that of an institutional figurehead.

He was seen as publicly loyal to Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, even as reforms sharply curtailed the powers and budgets of the religious establishment. 

Al-Asheikh's fatwas often shifted in line with political priorities. After 2010, the Saudi state established a legal monopoly on religious edicts through the Council of Senior Scholars, which he led. This sidelined independent clerics and ensured that fatwas bolstered state policy.

His rulings legitimised sensitive decisions such as women's right to drive in 2017, framing the decree as religiously permissible after decades of clerical opposition. He regularly issued statements stressing obedience to the monarch, linking political stability with religious legitimacy.

His pronouncements also supported the state's broader social reforms, including endorsing curbs on the religious police, softening positions on gender roles, and giving religious backing to cultural liberalisation under Vision 2030.

At the same time, Al-Asheikh condemned extremist groups like the Islamic State (IS) group and denounced sectarianism, echoing the government's narrative of "moderation" while reinforcing the suppression of alternative religious voices and minorities in the kingdom.

Although Al-Asheikh held the title of the country's top scholar, his influence over society had diminished in recent years. The dismantling of clerical powers in daily life highlighted the reduced weight of the official religious establishment, even as his position provided legitimacy to decisions already taken by the state.

Al-Asheikh leaves behind four sons, including Abdullah Al-Asheikh, who continues as imam of Imam Turki bin Abdullah Mosque in Riyadh and oversees a research programme named after his father.