King Salman wins King Faisal Prize for Service to Islam

Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman was named the winner of the 2017 King Faisal International Prize (KFIP) for Service to Islam.

The names of winners were announced here on Tuesday by Makkah Emir Prince Khaled Al-Faisal, who is the director of the King Faisal Foundation and chairman of the KFIP committee.

The prize for Service to Islam was awarded to King Salman in recognition of his outstanding services to Islam and Muslims, his unfaltering commitment to serve the two Holy Mosques and their visitors/pilgrims, his allegiance to the Prophet’s Sira (i.e. Life of Prophet Mohammed), sponsorship and support of the Historic Atlas of the Prophet’s Sira and its implementation by King Abdulaziz Dara (Foundation for Research and Archives), and founding of King Abdulaziz Complex for Endowment Libraries in Madinah for preserving Arabic and Islamic heritage. 
The prize also recognizes King Salman’s endeavors to unite Arabs and Muslims in the face of daunting challenges in the Arab and Muslim world. The King’s efforts include the formation of a Riyadh-based Islamic military alliance to combat terrorism, his unwavering support of the Palestinian cause through political, moral and humanitarian measures.

The KFIP for Islamic Studies went to Professor Ridwan Al-Sayyid of Lebanon in recognition of his overall specialized publications that enriched the Arabic Library as well as his distinguished contribution to the Prize’s topic namely:

– The contributions in his researches and studies of broad and thorough knowledge of the Arabic Islamic jurisprudential and political heritage with full acquaintance with modern research methodology.

– Characterization of his academic research by precise scientific methodology.

– Successful integration of original Islamic political thought and current Arabic Islamic reality.

– Multiplicity of his studies on Muslim political thought, including issues of governance, authority, state, society and nation as related to historic Islamic reality.

Arabic Language Academy of Jordan won the prize for Arabic Language and Literature in recognition of its distinguished efforts in the transfer of science and technology through translation, Arabization of technical terms, and publication of specialized glossaries and its relentless efforts to make Arabic the language of instruction, an objective sought by various scientific institutions throughout the Arab World.

The Academy entrusted the task of translation to highly qualified specialists known for their mastery of both English and Arabic, thus ensuring the highest quality for its project.

Professor Tadamitsu Kishimoto, of Japan, won the prize for medicine for Biologic Therapeutics in Autoimmune Diseases.

Professor Tadamitsu Kishimoto is Professor, immunology Frontier Research Center, Osaka University and Emeritus professor at Osaka University, Japan. The prize is in recognition of his prominent role in developing a novel biologic therapy for autoimmune diseases.

Professor Kishimoto, through his work for more than 30 years, is responsible for discovering interleukin-6 (IL-6), its receptor and signaling pathways. He established the physiological function of the interleukin-6 (IL-6) pathway and its role in inflammatory/autoimmune diseases.

Subsequently, he developed an interleukin-6 (IL-6) receptor-blocking antibody into a biological therapy, leading the clinical development of this therapy towards first approval for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis.

Science

The prize for science (physics) was jointly awarded to Professor Laurens Molenkamp, of Netherlands, and Professor Daniel Loss of Switzerland.

Professor Laurens Molenkamp has significantly contributed to the experimental field of spintronics. His work includes groundbreaking methods for creating and manipulating spin-polarized charge-carrier states in semiconductors, with the potential to develop magnetic storage devices. Professor Molenkamp has experimentally confirmed the quantum spin-Hall effect, which firms up the field of topological insulators, a novel form of quantum matter.

Daniel Loss

Professor Daniel Loss is a pioneer in the theory of spin dynamics and spin coherence in quantum dots showing promise for practical applications in spin quantum computers. The idea is to use the spin rather than the charge of electrons trapped in quantum dots as quantum bits. His work has inspired many important experimental programs. Professor Loss’ contributions open the door to powerful spintronic quantum computers with exceptional speed and storage capacity.