47 Prominent Muslims in Queen’s Jubilee Honors

Professor Aziz Sheikh, an eminent academic and medical researcher, whose work involved proving the efficacy of the Oxford-AstraZeneca and Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines, has been awarded knighthood for services to medicine in the Queen’s Jubilee Birthday Honors, 2022.

Through the EAVE II study, Professor Sheikh and his team were the first to reveal that the Omicron variant was less severe and resulted in fewer hospitalizations than the Delta variant. He is now researching other key vaccine issues, directly informing the COVID-19 response.

In an interview, Professor Sheikh said, “Alhamdulillah, I am delighted that we have been able to contribute evidence that has helped guide national and international decision-making concerning various aspects of the COVID-19 pandemic. The last couple of years have been challenging for my family, as the intensity of the COVID-19 work has been all-consuming. My family have, however, been nothing but supportive throughout my research journey, and to them also my heartfelt thanks.”

There were 47 Muslim achievers honored with 18 order of the British Empire awards (OBEs), 15 Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBEs), and 13 British Empire Medal (BEMs).

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Moeen Ali was awarded an OBE for his services to the game of cricket, the first Asian-origin cricketer to captain England in T20s, and the first Asian-origin cricketer to captain England in any format since Nasser Hussain in 2003. The batsman was part of the Chennai Super Kings squad that won the 2021 Indian Premier League, becoming the first Englishman to do so.

Ali has also done some philanthropic work and became an ambassador of the StreetChance program, which provides free cricket coaching sessions in deprived areas. In January 2015, he joined Orphans in Need, an international NGO, as a Global Brand Ambassador.

Ali has said: “It’s so important that schemes like StreetChance give young people the opportunity to play cricket and to learn key life skills, wherever they’re from and whatever their background.”

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Other sports stars to be honored include former footballer Anwar Uddin, awarded an MBE for his services to association football.

Uddin, 40, was the first person of Bangladeshi heritage to play professional football in England and became the first British Asian to captain a football club. He was appointed as caretaker assistant-manager to Giuliano Grazioli at Barnet in 2011, making him the first-ever British-Asian to assume a coaching position in English football.

Uddin is also involved in a joint Kick It Out and Football Supporters’ Association project, which was launched under his guidance in 2014 and aims to increase diversity among match-going supporters. He has helped create over 150 diverse supporters’ groups across the country. His work has contributed to his appointment in 2021 to the FA’s National Council which makes him the first British South Asian ex-player in the council’s history.

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Najma Khalid, Founder and Director of Women’s Care, Help and Inspire (CHAI) Project has dedicated over 20 years to collaborating with disadvantaged communities, received an MBE for services to the community in Oldham. She has been involved in art projects like the British Council Active Citizens Program, which saw 36 women undertake social action projects; and the healthy cookbook, Chapatti and Chat, designed to combat obesity and loneliness.

She has been the founder of the renowned Women’s CHA Project, a well-being project that has empowered thousands of women since 2011 and has worked with Oldham Opportunity Area to deliver a Parent Power project designed to focus on progression into post-secondary education to improve outcomes for all students and encourage parents to become community champions since 2019.

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Nazrul Islam has been awarded a BEM in recognition of his services to the Tower Hamlets community during COVID-19, where he saw the need for a council estate-based hub for residents creating the Dorset Community Association (DCA) which provides a range of services for all; older residents’ lunch clubs, homework support for children, local estate consultation events; and fun events bringing the community together.

During the pandemic he set up a community larder in partnership with Tower Hamlets, donating over 1,500 bags of groceries to poverty-stricken residents and liaising with local catering companies to provide over 1,200 fresh, healthy meals delivered to older shielded residents and people with disabilities twice-weekly.

He chose local caterers suffering from loss of income, supporting their welfare during the economic crisis and signed up many local volunteers and opened the center as a base for community use, making check-in phone calls, distributing PPE and hundreds of Covid-19 leaflets and supporting members of the community by receiving vaccines and helping obtain prescriptions.

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Veteran independent educational consultant Rukhsana Yaqoob of Leytonstone was awarded an MBE for services to education for over 30 years in secondary schools raising the attainment of underachieving pupils.

Through her work as the national president of the Muslim Teacher’ Association and as a mentor for Investing in Diversity at the Institute of Education and the Black Professionals Network, she helps educators reach their full potential. She served as a governor for 27 years and was the managing director of Kiran, a refuge for abused women.

List Of Muslims Honored In the Queen Jubilee Birthday Honours

Knight Bachelor

• Professor Aziz SHEIKH OBE FRSE Chair, Primary Care Research & Development, University of Edinburgh, for services to Covid-19, Research & Policy Lasswade City of Edinburgh.

Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE)

• Abdul HAI, Lately Cabinet Member for Young People, Equalities & Cohesion, London Borough of Camden, for services to Young People & to the community in Camden & London, Greater London.

• Afia CHOUDHURY, Foster Carer, London Borough of Tower Hamlets, for services to Children, London, Greater London.

• Dr Asim YUSUF, Consultant Psychiatrist & Islamic Scholar, for services to the Muslim Community Wolverhampton West Midlands

• Dr Azeem IBRAHIM, Director, New Lines Institute for Strategy & Policy, for services to the Union, to Diversity & to Foreign Policy , City of Glasgow

• Haroon KARIM, Chair, Balham & Tooting Mosque & Trustee, World Memon Organization, for services to Philanthropy & to the community in South London & Pakistan London, Greater London.

• Hifsa HAROON-IQBAL, MBE DL Regional Prevent Coordinator, Department for Education, for services to Social Cohesion, Staffordshire.

• Kamruddin KOTHIA, Chair of Trustees, Star Academies, for services to Education, Blackburn, Lancashire.

• Moeen ALI, for services to Cricket Birmingham, West Midlands.

• Mohammed Abdul MUNIM, for services to the British Bangladeshi Catering Industry Dartford Kent

• Dr Noha ELSAKKA Consultant, Medical Microbiology & Virology & Service Clinical Director, NHS Grampian, for services to the NHS & the Covid-19 Response Aberdeen City of Aberdeen

• Osman AHMED, Senior Officer, National Crime Agency, for services to Law Enforcement London, Greater London.

• Professor Parveen YAQOOB, Deputy Vice-Chancellor, University of Reading, for services to Higher Education Reading Berkshire

• Dr Raghib ALI Consultant in Acute Medicine, Oxford University Hospitals NHS Trust & Senior Clinical Research Associate, Epidemiology, University of Cambridge, for services to the NHS & to the Covid-19 Response, High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire.

• Dr Sabir ZAZAI, FRSE Chief Executive, Scottish Refugee Council, for services to Refugees, Rutherglen, Lanarkshire.

• Professor Samia NEFTI-MEZIANI Professor of Artificial Intelligence & Robotics, & Head, Centre for Autonomous Systems & Advanced Robotics, for services to Robotics Altrincham Greater Manchester

• Shahina AHMAD, Principal, Eden Girls’ School, London Borough of Waltham Forest, for services to Education, London, Greater London.

• Tariq Navid SHAH, Philanthropist, for services to Charity Doncaster South Yorkshire

• Yasmine Joun MOEZINIA, Deputy Director, COP26 Private Finance Hub, HM Treasury, for services to Climate Finance London, Greater London.

Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE)

• Anwar UDDIN, Fans, for Diversity Campaign Manager, The Football Supporters’ Association, for services to Association Football, London, Greater London.

• Badrun Nesa PASHA, Co-founder, Bangladeshi Women’s Association, for services to the Bangladeshi community in the West Midlands Birmingham West Midlands

• Ghazain CHOUDHRY, for services to Wheelchair Basketball London, Greater London.

• Humera HAQQANI, Managing Director, Let’s Talk, for services to Business & to the community in Rochdale , Greater Manchester

• Mohammad ASAD, Imam & Muslim Chaplain, for services to Charitable Fundraising & to the NHS during Covid-19 Walsall West Midlands

• Mohammed Sadiq BADAT, for voluntary & charitable services in the community of Leicester & Abroad Leicester Leicestershire

• Najma KHALID, Founder, Women’s CHAI Project & Lead Organizer, Parent Power Oldham, for services to the community in Oldham, Greater Manchester

• Raja Suleman RAZA, Founder & CEO, Spice Village, for services to Business & Philanthropy, particularly during Covid-19 London, Greater London.

• Razia Tariq HADAIT, Founder & Chief Executive Officer, Himaya Haven CIC, for services to the community in , Birmingham, West Midlands

• Dr Rizwan Yahya AHMED, Consultant Respiratory Physician, Bolton NHS Foundation Trust, for services to Public Health during Covid-19 Bolton Greater Manchester

• Rozina AHMED, Principal Policy Officer, Mayor of London’s Office, for services to Equality, Diversity & Inclusion in Education, Culture & Sport, London, Greater London.

• Rukhsana YAQOOB, Education Consultant, for services to Education London, Greater London.

• Safia JAMA, CEO, Women’s Inclusive Team, for services to the Voluntary & Charitable Sector, London, Greater London.

• Tariq ALI, for services to the community in Wolverhampton during Covid-19 Wolverhampton, West Midlands.

• Zamir KHAN, Community Volunteer, for services to the Blackburn Muslim Burial Society & to the community in Blackburn, particularly during Covid-19, Blackburn, Lancashire.

British Empire Medal (BEM)

• Abdul WAKIL, Director, Islamic Integration Community Centre, for services to the Muslim Community in the London Borough of Hounslow London, Greater London.

• Abrar KHAN, for services to the community in Ilford, London Borough of Redbridge, particularly during Covid-19, London, Greater London.

• Amjid HUSSAIN, Director, Bradford Moor Play & Support Service. For voluntary services to the community in Bradford, West Yorkshire.

• Ashfaq SIDDIQUE, for services to the community in the London Borough of Barking & Dagenham during Covid-19, London, Greater London.

• Fazle Abbas KINKHABWALA ,For services to the Indian & Pakistani communities in Birmingham & to the Schools of King Edward VI in Birmingham, West Midlands,

• Ibrar ALI, Volunteer Development Manager, Bradford Moor Play & Support Service. For voluntary services to the community in Bradford, West Yorkshire.

• Joanne MOHAMMED, Registered Nurse, Royal Bolton Hospital, for services to Nursing & to Disability Awareness, Blackburn, Lancashire.

• Md Nazrul ISLAM, for services to the community in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets during Covid-19 London, Greater London.

• Md Oliur RAHMAN, for services to the community in the London Borough of Islington during Covid-19 London, Greater London.

• Mohammed Tahir ALI, for services to the community in Preston, Lancashire during Covid-19 Preston, Lancashire,

• Nafesa SALAH-UD-DIN, Civil Service Local Delivery & Engagement Lead, Cabinet Office, for Public Service & services to Diversity & Inclusion, London, Greater London

• Rukeya Khanom MIAH, Deputy Associate Director of Nursing & Senior Midwife, Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, for services to Maternity & Healthcare Education, particularly during Covid-19, Keighley, West Yorkshire.

• Yaser Hachem MARTINI, Co-founder & Trustee, Team Margot Foundation, for services to Stem Cell Donation, London, Greater London.