Abdullah ibn Abdur-Rahman Siraj (; 1876 – May 1949) was a Jordanian politician and Islamic scholar who held various posts in the

Kingdom of Hejaz The Hashemite Kingdom of Hejaz (, ''Al-Mamlakah al-Ḥijāziyyah Al-Hāshimiyyah'') was a state in the Hejaz region of Western Asia that included the western portion of the Arabian Peninsula that was ruled by the Hashemite dynasty. It was self ...

and later the Emirate of Transjordan, including the office of

Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

of both countries (including being the 5th Prime Minister of Jordan). Born in

Mecca Mecca, officially Makkah al-Mukarramah, is the capital of Mecca Province in the Hejaz region of western Saudi Arabia; it is the Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. It is inland from Jeddah on the Red Sea, in a narrow valley above ...

, he graduated from Madrasah as-Sawlatiyah and later

al-Azhar University The Al-Azhar University ( ; , , ) is a public university in Cairo, Egypt. Associated with Al-Azhar Al-Sharif in Islamic Cairo, it is Egypt's oldest degree-granting university and is known as one of the most prestigious universities for Islamic ...

Cairo Cairo ( ; , ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Egypt and the Cairo Governorate, being home to more than 10 million people. It is also part of the List of urban agglomerations in Africa, largest urban agglomeration in Africa, L ...

. In 1907 he was appointed Mufti of the

Hanafi The Hanafi school or Hanafism is the oldest and largest Madhhab, school of Islamic jurisprudence out of the four schools within Sunni Islam. It developed from the teachings of the Faqīh, jurist and theologian Abu Hanifa (), who systemised the ...

s in Mecca by Sharif Ali Abd Allah. He was elected to represent Mecca in the Ottoman parliament in 1908, though he resigned before he ever served. After Sharif Husayn declared independence from the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

in 1916, he appointed Siraj as Chief Justice and Deputy Prime Minister of the Hejaz government. Siraj served as acting Prime Minister in lieu of Emir Ali until 1918. After Husayn abdicated the throne in 1924, Siraj held the office of Prime Minister during most of Ali's short reign, which ended with the Kingdom's surrender to the Saudi Sultanate of Nejd in 1925. He then migrated to the

Jordan Jordan, officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, is a country in the Southern Levant region of West Asia. Jordan is bordered by Syria to the north, Iraq to the east, Saudi Arabia to the south, and Israel and the occupied Palestinian ter ...

, where under Emir Abd Allah he served as Prime Minister from 1931 to 1933 while simultaneously holding the portfolios of

Finance Finance refers to monetary resources and to the study and Academic discipline, discipline of money, currency, assets and Liability (financial accounting), liabilities. As a subject of study, is a field of Business administration, Business Admin ...

and the

Interior Ministry An interior ministry or ministry of the interior (also called ministry of home affairs or ministry of internal affairs) is a government department that is responsible for domestic policy, public security and law enforcement. In some states, the ...

, as well as the office of Chief Justice. Translation: PRO. FO 195/2286. Monahan to Lowther. Jidda, 15 December 1908. "He is Mufti at Mecca of the Hanafi sect, as his father was before him. His family is of Indian origin but has been residing in Mecca for more than 200 years. His father died in exile in

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

about 12 years ago, having incurred the displeasure of Grand Sharif Aun ar-Rafik, which would be a fact in his favor, and he himself (he is now about 35) was living in Constantinople in fear of the Grand Sharif for more than ten years until he returned two years ago to Mecca. He appears to have a good reputation, intellectually, and morally, and knows Turkish well…" Quoted in

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Siraj, Abdullah 1870s births 1949 deaths Hanafis People from Mecca Madrasah as-Sawlatiyah alumni Al-Azhar University alumni Prime ministers of Jordan Interior ministers of Jordan Finance ministers of Jordan Jordanian judges Muftis of Mecca