Ali Warsame Hassan

Sheikh Ali Warsame Hassan (, ) was a Somali Islamic cleric, preacher, and scholar of Dawah, credited with being one of the first scholars to introduce the Salafi Da'wah to Somalis. He was among the most prominent of Somali scholars.

A founder and emir of Al-Ittihad Al-Islamiya, he later broke ties with the group, becoming a leading figure of Jama'at al-I'tisam (Ictisaam) in 1996, a reformist, non-militant group.

Biography Sheikh Ali Warsame was born in 1939/1940 in the outskirts of Ainabo, in the Sarar region of Somaliland. Born to a pastoral family, he spent his childhood in the countryside and raised camels for his family. His father Warsame Hassan died when he was young. Sheikh Ali Warsame belongs to the Habar Je'lo clan of the wider Isaaq clan-family.

He moved to Burao to study in 1954, then Hargeisa, and later on went to study in Dire Dawa, Ethiopia in 1958, where he completed his memorization of the Quran and began studying Islamic sciences, including fiqh (jurisprudence) and Arabic grammar.

Preaching In 1969, he enrolled at the Islamic University of Madinah in Saudi Arabia, where he pursued his Master's degree. During his studies in Saudi universities, Sheikh Ali Warsame developed a Salafi religious vision and began his preaching activities, and frequently engaged in debates with Sufis in various forums and mosques. He was at the time considered a consensus figure accepted by both the northern and southern Somali communities:

Al-Ittihaad Al-Islami played a significant role in spreading the Islamic da'wah, educating the youth, and establishing Quranic schools and religious books until the collapse of the socialist government in 1991. Sheikh Abdulkadir Nur Farah stated:

Throughout his career, he mentored numerous students who later became prominent Islamic scholars, including his son Dr Hassan Sheikh Ali Warsame.