Ahmed Kuftaro

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Sheikh Ahmed Muhammad Amin Kuftaro (December 1915 - September 1, 2004) was the Grand Mufti of Syria, the highest Muslim religious official in that nation.

He was born in Damascus, the son of theologian Mohammed Amin Kuftaro. He was a founding member of the League of Muslim Ulemas. He became mufti of Damascus in 1946, grand mufti of Damascus in 1958, and grand mufti of Syria in 1964.

He was an advocate of inter-religious dialogue. He was invited to many countries around the world as an unofficial ambassador of Islam. These visits culminated in 1985 with a visit to the Pope in Rome. Even in his later years, as his health began to wane, he made a point of traveling around the world to speak on Islam and its role in the brotherhood of humanity.

Kuftaro had 12 children from the same wife. He first visited the US in 1966, giving lectures on inter-faith dialogue. He died of a heart attack and was buried at Abu Nur.