The big names who left us in 2017

Loved or unloved, they left their mark on the Arab world

The late Kuwaiti comedian Abdulhussein Abdulredha. Courtesy of MBC

1. Abdulhussein Abdulredha

Kuwaiti comedian and actor Abdulhussain Abdulredha embodied the golden age of Kuwaiti theatre and was known as the father of comedy and was a founder of the arts movement in Kuwait. His quick-witted banter in iconic performances such as Bye Bye London and Saif Al Arab offered insight into Arab society and Kuwait at the time of the invasion by Iraq. Abdulredha received many honours in a career spanning more than 50 years, including the Sultan Bin Ali Al Owais Cultural Award for artistic and cultural achievement in the Arab world in 1997. He died of a heart attack in London on August 11 at the age of 78.

2. Abu Bakr Salem Belfkih

Belfkih was one of the first Arab stars to emerge from Yemen. From humble beginnings performing nasheeds (spiritual odes) in Tarim, Yemen, he rose to become a giant of Arab folk music, releasing more than 20 albums and playing sold-out concerts for more than 30 years. His million-selling songs include Lima Alqee Al Habib (When I find my love), Khaf Rabek (Fear your God) and 24 Sa'aa (24 hours), all considered classics in the traditional Tarab genre of Arab music.  He died on December 10 after a long battle with heart disease. He was 78.

Omar Abdel Rahman, the convicted mastermind behind bomb plots in New York, died in a US prison. US District Court / EPA

3. Omar Abdel-Rahman

Known in the US as the Blind Sheikh (he lost his sight due to childhood diabetes), the Egyptian-born militant Muslim leader was convicted of conspiracy in the 1993 World Trade Centre bombing and sentenced to life in prison. At the time of the attack, he was facing deportation for providing false information regarding his marriage status and a bad cheque charge in Egypt.

He died of natural causes at the Federal Medical Centre in Butner, North Carolina on February 18, aged 78.

Syrian actress and activist, Fadwa Suleimane had to flee Syria after supporting an uprising against Bashar Al Assad. Jacques Demarthon / AFP

4. Fadwa Suleiman

The outspoken Syrian actress made her name in Syrian television shows such as The Diary of Abou Antar, Little Ladies, and Small Hearts. FadwaFadwa became one of the most recognised faces of the Syrian civil war for leading protests and sit-ins against the government of Bashar Al Assad. The National Coalition of Syrian Revolution and Opposition Forces called her  "one of the symbols of the Syrian revolution". She fled to France in 2012 to escape a death sentence and after her family disowned her. She died of cancer in Paris on August 17, aged just 47.

Former Iraqi president Jalal Talabani was seen as a unifying elder statesman.

5. Jalal Talabani

An Iraqi Kurd, Talabani was the first non-Arab president of Iraq from 2006-14 and the founder and leader of one of the main Kurdish political parties, the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK). A  veteran of the Kurdish struggle for self-determination, he was seen as a unifying elder statesman who could soothe tempers among Iraq's Shiites, Sunnis and Kurds and was nicknamed Mam Jalal (Uncle Jalal) among both Iraqi Kurds and Arabs. He stepped down as president in 2014 after 18 months of treatment in Germany following a stroke. He died of brain haemorrhage on October 3 in Berlin, aged 83.

Egyptian actress Karima Mokhtar was known as the 'mother of Egyptians’. Courtesy Aletihad

6. Karima Mokhtar

Dubbed the "Mother of Egyptians", she was one of the first women in the country to gain a bachelor's degree and began her career in radio on a 1950s children's show because her parents disapproved of film acting. That changed when she married actor and director Noor Al Demerdash, who encouraged her ambition. Over half a century she became famous for playing mother roles in films such as The Kids Have Grown Up and The Grandson. When she died at the age of 82 on January 12, the nation mourned. Even the Israeli army's Arabic spokesman paid tribute to her on Twitter.

Popular Egyptian singer and actress Shadia in the early 1950s. AFP

7. Shadia

Born Fatma Ahmed Kamal Shaker, the iconic Egyptian actress and singer took the stage name Shadia in the 1950s. Though she acted in comedy, romantic films and dramas, it was her singing that established her as one of the most important Egyptian cinema stars of her era. The public adored her and she starred in more than 100 films, many of them depicting social issues. Her most famous roles were in El less wal kilab (Chased by Dogs) and Alzouga talattasha (The Thirteenth Wife)  and one of her most popular songs, Ya Habibti Ya Masr (Oh My Beloved Egypt), became an anthem during Egypt's Arab Spring protests in 2011. She retired in 1987 and died of a stroke on November 28. She was 86.

Former Yemeni president Ali Abdullah Saleh was killed by the Houthi rebels with whom he had allied his forces. Khaled Abdullah / Reuters

8. Ali Abdullah Saleh

The former president of Yemen met his death, aged 75, at the hands of the Houthi rebels he had chosen as allies in a bid to recover the power he had lost in 2012 when he was forced to resign. Saleh was the first leader to serve as president of a unified Yemen and ruled the country with an iron fist for 33 years. He was forced from office after the Arab Spring and almost immediately began plotting against his successor, Abdrabu Mansur Hadi.

But after two years of civil war, he discarded the Houthis and they killed him for it, attacking his convoy outside the Yemeni capital, Sanaa, on December 4.

9. Adnan Khashoggi

The Saudi billionaire arms dealer was as one of the world's richest men in the 1970s and 1980s. Born in Makkah, Khashoggi amassed a $4 billion fortune brokering deals between US companies and the Saudi government, among other clients. He was implicated in the Iran-Contra affair as a key middleman in the arms-for-hostages exchange.

He was arrested in 1988 in Switzerland and charged with fraud, conspiracy and racketeering. The charges were later reduced to obstruction of justice and he was acquitted in 1990. He died while being treated for Parkinson's disease in London on June 6, aged 81.

10. Mansour bin Muqrin

Prince Mansour bin Muqrin was the son of Prince Muqrin Al Saud, the former crown prince of Saudi Arabia. He became a businessman and in 2015 King Salman appointed him adviser at the court of the crown prince. This year he was one of eight young royals appointed as deputy governors of Saudi provinces. He died in a helicopter crash on November 5 near the border with Yemen, as he was on his way back from an inspection tour with seven other officials. He was 42 or 43.