The prestigious King Faisal International Prize (KFIP) was awarded in five categories Monday evening with the prize for Service to Islam going to Egypt's Main Shariah Society for Cooperation in the Teachings of the Qur'an and Sunnah. Professor Abdul Salam Muhammad Shaddadi from Morocco won the Prize for Islamic Studies (studies dealing with human urban thought among Muslim scholars). Professor Abdul Aziz Bin Nasser Al-Mane' from the College of Arts in King Saud University, Saudi Arabia, won in the Arabic Language and Literature category for his investigation of verse and prose works classified during the period 300H to 700H. The Medicine Prize went to Prof. Ronald Levi from the United States, who is head of Oncology in the College of Medicine in Stanford University for his work on treatment directed to molecules. Prof. Sir Richard Henry Friend from Cambridge University, Britain, who is also Chairman of the Physical Sciences Council shared the Physics Prize with Prof. Rashed Alievic Siniev, a senior scientist and President of the Space Institute in the Russian Science Academy and Director of the Max Planck Institute for Astronomical Physics in Germany. The winners were announced during a press conference called here by Prince Khaled Al-Faisal, Emir of Makkah, who is Director General of the King Faisal Foundation and Chairman of the King Faisal International Prize Commission. The Emir thanked the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques and the Crown Prince for their support to the King Faisal Foundation and King Faisal International Prize. The press conference was held after a dinner party in honor of the members prize selection committees, at Al-Khozama Center here. Merit and excellence alone are the criteria for selection of the winners. Prince Khaled noted that KFIP winners have gone on to win numerous other prizes, including Nobel and attain prominent positions. Nine KFIP winners have later won Nobel prizes. Four of the six Physics and Chemistry Nobel laureates for 2001 were KFIP winners. Steven Chu who had been awarded the KFIP for Science in 1993, was named last month by then President-elect Barack Obama to head the US Department of Energy. Dr. Abdullah Al-Saleh Al-Othaimeen, KFIP Secretary General read out the statement of the prize's Secretariat General announcing the winners. Al-Othaimeen said the Prize for Service to Islam was awarded to the Main Shariah Society for Cooperation in the Teachings of the Qur'an and Sunnah in Cairo, Egypt for its noble deeds in serving Islam and Muslims. The society has been working diligently since its establishment about 100 years ago to instill the concept of religious call (Da'wa) to Allah as purely for Allah's sake and away from political objectives, relying on the Holy Qur'an and the Prophet's Sunnah with the aim of spreading Islamic awareness correctly as well as clarifying the disadvantages of heresies and superstition, Al-Othaimeen said. Abdul Salam Muhammad Shaddadi who won the Islamic Studies Prize is professor in the Institute for Scientific Research at Muhammad V University, Rabat. He was awarded the prize in appreciation of his long years of studying Ibn Khaldoun as a model of human urban thought among Muslims. The work he has presented is distinctive and diversified. His study is enriched by comparisons with modern sociological theories. Prof. Abdul Aziz Bin Nasser Al-Mane' was honored in appreciation of his distinctive scientific efforts in the field of scrutinizing texts from the heritage during the period 300H and 700H. He showed that he was conversant with various references in Arabic literature heritage. His works will help specialist researchers enrich the Arabic library, Al-Othaimeen said. Professor Ronald Levi was chosen for his pioneering and distinctive study for 30 years in the field of immunity treatment of cancer. He has discovered antibodies that can differentiate between cancerous cells and cells of benign tumors. This discovery has led to creating an effective means for the treatment of lymphatic tumors. Levi's method has been in use since 1980 in the treatment of lymphatic tumors. Besides, he has created other treatment methods to catalyze a patient's immune system to combat cancer cells, by using a vaccine against cancer tumors. Prof. Sir Richard Henry Friend who shared the Science (Physics) prize with Prof. Rashed Alievic Siniev, has done pioneering work in the field of physics and engineering of semi-conductors made of plastics. His technique for the manufacture of these appliances is a radical change from the technology used in conventional manufacture. He has paved the way for the multiple applications of plastic appliances. Siniev's unique work has made a basic contribution in astronomical physics. He has paved the way for theoretical research on cosmic rays. His work on black holes and dual stars is considered to be decisive in developing the field of cosmic rays.
