In absentia: Prayers for Saudi king held

Sardar Muhammad Yousaf leads prayer at Faisal mosque

The funeral prayer in absentia of late King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz, organised by the International Islamic University Islamabad (IIUI), was offered at Faisal Mosque on Saturday.

The prayer was led by Federal Minister for Religious Affairs and Inter-faith Harmony Sardar Muhammad Yousaf.

Top Saudi diplomats, officials of other Islamic countries, Prime Minister’s Adviser Sartaj Aziz, former chairman Senate Mian Muhammad Soomro, acting IIUI President Dr Mohammad Bashir Khan, students and teachers of the varsity and members of civil society attended the prayers.

Yousaf, while talking to the media at the Faisal Mosque campus of IIUI, said Abdullah’s death was an irreparable loss, adding that the Pakistani nation stands with the late king’s family and Saudi nation in this hour of grief.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 25^th, 2015.