The funeral of the late Abbès Jirari, who passed away on Saturday at the age of 86, took place after the Dhuhr and Funeral prayers at the Chouhada mosque, in the presence of the Advisor to HM the King, Fouad Ali El Himma, and the Minister of Endowments and Islamic Affairs, Ahmed Toufiq, upon High Instructions of the Sovereign.
The body of the late Abbès Jirari was buried at the Chouhada cemetery, in the presence of members of his family and close friends, and several other personalities.
Born on February 15, 1937 in Rabat, the late Abbès Jirari was considered the Dean of literature in Morocco and one of the pioneers of culture and thought both in Morocco and in the Arab world.
The deceased held several academic and scientific positions. He was notably a member of the Academy of the Kingdom, professor at the Faculties of Letters in Fez, Meknes and Rabat, professor at the Royal School, and Dean of the Faculty of Letters at Cadi Ayyad University in Marrakech.
He had also held the positions of the Chargé de Mission at the Royal House, Secretary of Foreign Affairs at the Moroccan Embassy in Cairo in 1962, President of the Rabat-Salé Council of Ulema (1994) and Khateeb (preacher) of the Lalla Soukaina Mosque in Rabat in 1989.
The late Abbès Jirari was also a member of the Arabic Language Academies of Cairo and Damascus, a member of the Jordanian Academy for Research in Islamic Civilization, the League of Researchers of Arab Popular Heritage, the Center for Anthropological Research in the Middle East and of the Association of Moroccan Historians.
He was also a member of the Al Qarawiyine University Council, vice-president of the Ribat Al Fath Association and honorary president of the Association for Research in Muslim Western Literature.
The deceased was decorated with the Arch Wissam of first class (Great Officer). He also received the Arab Historian’s Decoration, the Kingdom Academy Medal as well as the Great Merit Prize and the Decoration of Merit (Egypt).
The late Abbès Jirari holds a Bachelor’s degree in Arabic Literature (Cairo University in 1961), a Master’s degree in Arabic Letters (1965) and a State Doctorate in Letters at the same university (1969).
He is the author of several books and research works having dealt in particular with issues of Arab heritage and Islamic thought, including « freedom and literature », « culture in the era of change » and « Religion and politics « , among others.
