Renowned Islamic scholar and Head of Islamic Labour Front in Lebanon, Dr. Fathi Yakan breathed his last on Saturday (June 13) afternoon after he was hospitalised for serious health
problems on Friday night. He was 76.
Dr. Fathi Yakan was a prominent Islamic scholar and Daiee. He was born in Tripoli, north of Lebanon, on February 9, 1933.
With a Ph.D. in Arabic and Islamic Studies, Sheikh Yakan was among the pioneers of the Islamic Movement in the 1950s. He was also the General Secretary of the Lebanese Al-Jamaa Al-Islamiya from 1962 until 1992 when he won his seat in the Lebanese parliament. He was a key activist on the political stage, which was very clear during the 1996 elections.
Sheikh Yakan initiated a political effort between Prime Minister Fouad Saniora and his allies on the one hand and the opposition in a bid to end the crisis in the wake of the 2006 Israeli war on Lebanon. As a key figure in the Lebanese National Opposition, he headed prayers for Sunnis and Shiites on Friday, December 8, 2006 and called in his speech for the unity of Muslims against Israeli plots and schemes.
Sheikh Yakan was known for his support for resistance movements in Lebanon and the Arab and Islamic worlds.
He described the 2006 victory as one for Lebanon and the whole nation, Sunnis before Shiites, “because the project of the resistance is not only Lebanese project but a global one.”
The Islamic scholar also played a significant role in mending fences between political parties in the region. He was the mediator between the Islamic brotherhood in Syria and President Bachar Assad. He also played the same role between Syria and Turkey between 1998 and 1999, in the wake of the Syria-Turkey crisis.
He was the author of more than 35 books, including: How do We Call for Islam?, Towards a Unified Global Islamic Movement, and What does “I’m a Muslim” Mean?
Some of his books have been translated into many languages, including Malayalam.
Dr. Yakan was married to Mrs Mona Haddad with whom he had established a private Islamic University (Al-Jinan University). He has four daughters and a son.