Sheikh Bandar Baleela, Saudi Quran reciter

Contemporary · born 1975

Sheikh Bandar Baleela بندر بليلة

Saudi Quran reciter · Imam of Masjid al-Haram in Makkah.

Also known as: Baleela · Bandar Balilah · Bandar Balila · Bandar Al Baleela

Born: 1975, Makkah
Role: Imam of Masjid al-Haram in Makkah
Nationality: Saudi
Education: BA and MA, Umm al-Qura University; PhD in fiqh, Islamic University of Madinah (2008)
Academic post: Assistant professor, Taif University (from 2010)

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Biography

Sheikh Bandar Baleela (b. 1975, Makkah) is a Saudi Quran reciter and an imam and khatib of Masjid al-Haram in Makkah, where he began leading Tarawih prayers in 2013. He joined the Council of Senior Scholars in 2020 and delivered the Arafat sermon of Hajj in 2021.

He completed his schooling in Makkah and studied at the College of Sharia and Islamic Studies at Umm al-Qura University, earning a bachelor's degree in 1417 AH (1996) and a master's degree in 1422 AH (2001). In 1429 AH (2008) he received a doctorate in fiqh (Islamic jurisprudence) from the Islamic University of Madinah.

He taught fiqh as a cooperating teacher at the Institute of the Haram in Makkah and was appointed an assistant professor in the Sharia department of Taif University's College of Sharia and Regulations in 1431 AH (2010). He led prayers and preached at several mosques in Makkah, the last of them the Sheikh Ibn Baz Mosque in the Al-Shasha district.

After leading Tarawih at Masjid al-Haram in 2013, he was appointed an official imam there from 4 Dhu al-Hijjah 1434 AH (9 October 2013), and a royal order in 1441 AH (2019/20) named him a khatib of the mosque. In February 2026 the Grand Mufti assigned him, with other members of the Council of Senior Scholars, to issue fatwas at the Makkah branch of the General Presidency for Scholarly Research and Ifta.

How to recognise Sheikh Bandar Baleela's voice

Three things tend to place Bandar's voice: the measured Haramain style familiar from Makkah and Madinah broadcasts; a brisk pace that covers ground without losing precision; and a deep, weighty register that carries in a large hall. That is our own listening note to help you place the voice, not a sourced biographical claim.

Identify Bandar Baleela by voice

If you heard this voice at the masjid, in a video or on someone's phone and weren't sure it was Bandar Baleela, open RecitID and tap Detect. It names the reciter and the exact ayah from a few seconds of audio.

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Where to listen

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Common questions

Where is Bandar Baleela from?

Sheikh Bandar Baleela is a Saudi Quran reciter, born in Makkah in 1975.

When was Bandar Baleela born?

Bandar Baleela was born in 1975.

Where did Bandar Baleela study?

He earned his bachelor's (1996) and master's (2001) degrees at Umm al-Qura University in Makkah and a doctorate in fiqh from the Islamic University of Madinah in 2008.