Qatar, represented by the Ministry of Endowments (Awqaf) and Islamic Affairs, is participating in the 44th King Abdulaziz International Competition for the Memorization, Recitation and Interpretation of the Holy Qur'an. Representing Qatar in the competition are Omar Mubarak Saeed Haswan Al Marri in the category of memorizing the entire Holy Qur'an and Abdulallah Turki Muhammad Al Turki Al Subaie in the category of memorizing 15 Juz (parts). The preliminary qualifiers for the competition started last Friday and the final qualifiers for the competition will be held in the Grand Mosque in Makkah under the supervision of the Saudi Ministry of Islamic Affairs, Dawah, and Guidance through its General Secretariat of the Local and International Quran Competition. About 166 contestants from 117 countries around the world are participating in the 44th edition in hopes of claiming the SAR 4 million prize. The 44th King Abdulaziz International Competition includes five categories, the first is memorizing the entire Q ur'an in the seven authentic recitations (al-Qira'at al-Sab'a), the second category is memorizing the entire Qur'an with the interpretation of its terms in full, the third category is memorizing the entire Qur'an with proper recitation and intonation, the fourth category is memorizing of five Juz with proper recitation and intonation, while the fifth category is memorizing five Juz with correct recitation and intonation (for participants from non-member states of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation). The Ministry of Endowments (Awqaf) and Islamic Affairs and its departments aim to partake in international competitions focused on the Holy Qur'an in a way that meets and affirms Qatar's efforts in prioritizing the Qur'an and encouraging the youth to memorize and understand it. Source: Qatar News Agency