Murad Ebrahim

Ahod Balawag Ebrahim (; Jawi: احد بلاوݢ ابرهیم; born May 15, 1949), better known as Al Haj Murad Ebrahim, is a Moro Filipino politician and former rebel leader who served as the first chief minister of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao.

As the current chairman of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, a Moro regionalist and Islamist armed group in the southern Philippines, Ebrahim is a key figure in the Bangsamoro Peace Process in the Philippines.

Early life and education Born on 15 May 1949, Murad Ebrahim was born to an Islamic preacher. He lost both of his parents at a young age; his mother when he was just one year old and his father when he was 13 years old. He is the youngest among four children.

Ebrahim started his elementary studies when he was seven years old and completed the six-year program in five years. He entered the Cotabato Public High School in Cotabato City for his high school studies in 1960. After graduating from high school, Ebrahim enrolled at the Mindanao State University in Marawi under a scholarship but transferred to the Notre Dame University in Cotabato City in his second year after passing the entrance examination. He was granted a scholarship in Notre Dame by the Commission on National Integration (CIN)

On February 22, 2019, Ebrahim was appointed and sworn in by Duterte as the interim chief minister of the newly formed Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM). He leads the 80-member BTA, which will govern the five-province Bangsamoro region. Scheduled elections for the new members for the region's parliament took place in 2022.

At the official turnover of the ARMM to BARMM on February 26, 2019, Ebrahim announced the members of the first Bangsamoro Cabinet, with himself as concurrent minister of public works and highways. On November 11, 2019, he transferred his duties as public works minister to Finance Minister Eduard Guerra, while placing the finance ministry under the chief minister's supervision.

His government pursued a policy of promoting "moral governance", which Ebrahim says based on "moral values of Islam" as a response to corruption and failed governance in the former ARMM.

On February 8, 2022, Ebrahim ordered the ministers and their deputies of his cabinet to tender courtesy resignation while the director general of each ministry were directed to temporarily take over. This marked the end of Ebrahim's tenure as concurrent finance minister and was succeeded by Ubaida Pacasem who took their oath on March 14, 2022.

Ebrahim retained his position as interim Chief Minister when President Bongbong Marcos appointed a new set of members for the BTA in August 2022.

Amid former President Duterte's call for the secession of Mindanao from the Philippines in January 2024, Ebrahim released a statement expressing support for the incumbent administration of President Marcos and declared himself committed to the peace process and setting the foundation of an autonomous Bangsamoro region.

Ebrahim reportedly resigned as chief minister on March 3, 2025, to focus on the campaign for the October 2025 Bangsamoro Parliament election. His successor, Abdulraof Macacua's appointment has been questioned within the MILF. Following his resignation, Ebrahim declined an offer from President Marcos to take a seat as a regular member of parliament in the transitional legislature. In September 2025, Ebrahim clarified he was removed as Chief Minister before resigning as a regular member of parliament.

Personal life Al Haj Murad Ebrahim is married to Hadja Lupia Ebrahim, with whom he has two children. This allegation was denied by Malaysia and fellow MILF member Mohagher Iqbal.