Yusuf al-Qaradawi (Arabic: يوسف القرضاوي Yūsuf al-Qaraḍāwiy; or Yusuf al-Qardawi; born 9 September 1926) is an Egyptian Islamic theologian. He is best known for his programme, ash-Shariah wal-Hayat ("Shariah and Life"), broadcast on Al Jazeera, which has an estimated audience of 60 million worldwide. He is also well known for IslamOnline, a popular website he helped found in 1997 and for which he now serves as chief religious scholar.
Al-Qaradawi has published more than 120 books, including The Lawful and the Prohibited in Islam and Islam: The Future Civilization. He has also received eight international prizes for his contributions to Islamic scholarship, and is considered one of the most influential such scholars living today. Al-Qaradawi has long had a prominent role within the intellectual leadership of the Muslim Brotherhood, an Egyptian political organization, but twice (in 1976 and 2004) turned down offers for the official role in the organization.
Some of al-Qaradawi's views have been controversial in the West: he was refused an entry visa to the United Kingdom in 2008, and barred from entering France in 2012.
As of 2004, al-Qaradawi was a trustee of the Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies. He also served as a technical consultant for an epic movie in English on Muhammad.
Read more about Yusuf Al-Qaradawi: Biography, Awards and Recognition, Major Works