Hafiz Halil Mehtic, a distinguished Islamic theologian, university professor and author of numerous books, died on the night from Monday to Tuesday. The news of his death reverberated throughout Bosnia and Herzegovina, and many believers and admirers are saying goodbye to this respected scholar with sadness this morning.
Halil Mehtić was born in 1953 in Donji Vakuf. He graduated from the Gazi Husrev Bey madrasa (1975) and the Islamic Theological Faculty in Sarajevo (diploma in 1981).
He later obtained a master’s degree in the field of exegesis and Quranic sciences at the University of Islamic Studies in Karachi (1999), and a doctorate in 2007.
He was a long-time professor and one of the founders of the Faculty of Islamic Pedagogy in Zenica and held several academic positions.
Throughout his rich career, Professor Halil Mehtić held a number of important positions in the Islamic community and educational institutions.
He was the founder of the Islamic Cultural Center “Frankfurt on the Main” in Germany, the chief imam of the Mejlis of the Zenica Islamic Community, and the head of the Mešihat Office for the free territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina in the period 1992-1993. year.
As dean, he participated in the founding of the Islamic Pedagogical Academy in Zenica, and later held the position of mufti of the Zenica Muftiluk. He was the president of the Ilmijje BiH Association, vice dean for teaching, and president of the “Selam” Zenica association. In addition, as editor-in-chief of the magazine “Novi horizonti”, he made a significant contribution to the affirmation of Islamic thought and scientific work in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
He was also a candidate for reis-ul-ulema, when in 2012 he received the support of several muftis in the candidacy process.
A special, often quoted part of his biography is that Halil ef. Mehtić memorized the Qur’an during his stay in prison, completed hifz during detention and thus became known as the first Bosnian hafiz who completed hifz in prison. As it is stated, due to his notable religious activities, in January 1986, Mehtic was arrested and sentenced to three years in prison.
He described his prison experience in interviews and in the book “Freedom from Prison”, where he talked about the period of persecution and detention and how that period shaped his life and activities.
Mehtić is the author of several books and scientific works, participated in congresses and lectures in the country and abroad, was one of the most recognizable Bosnian scholars of the modern era, and often appeared in public media and shows devoted to religious and social issues.
His teaching is posted on “Hedjul-Islam” where he is ranked among five distinguished scholars from various parts of the world, he writes Klix.
