... And Bou-Yaqoub the Uncle and Father Passed Away

I begin my article today with the two noble verses from Surah Ar-Rahman (26-27): “In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. Every one upon the earth will perish, And there will remain the Face of your Lord, Owner of Majesty and Honor.” Truthful is Allah, the Most High, the Greatest. The simple meaning and interpretation of these noble verses is that all beings on the face of the earth—humans, jinn, animals, and everything else—are inevitably perishable and will die. Only Allah, the Exalted and Almighty, remains; He is the Ever-Living who never dies, and nothing of creation endures besides Him. “Owner of Majesty and Honor” describes Allah as possessing greatness, pride, and majesty, worthy of reverence and not disobedience, and He alone is the source of grace and favor to all His creation.

With a tone of mourning and consolation, I mourn the passing of my respected uncle and father figure, Hajj Youssef Ali Kamal – Abu Ya’qoub, may Allah have mercy on him and grant him Paradise. Time seemed to pause for a moment on Thursday, October 1, 2026, when I received a phone call at 3:00 PM stating, “Hajj has passed away.” This news was personally shocking to me, yet it is the decree of the Almighty, and there is no resisting His will.

Despite all the funeral rites, burial procedures, condolences, and the large number of mourners, and with sincere thanks to everyone, none of this could remove or alleviate the lump in my throat caused by the separation from my late uncle, Abu Ya’qoub, after a journey spanning more than 40 years with him—may Allah have mercy on him. He was the elder uncle and revered father figure to a generation that began its life by losing a beloved grandfather who nurtured and educated them. My first encounter with Abu Ya’qoub occurred six months later, more or less, when he asked me, “Do you think your grandfather (may Allah have mercy on him) would want you to stay at home?”

Your grandfather wanted you to be a man he could proudly present to people, so he took you under his wing and kept you by his side during all his social engagements, so that you could hone your skills, learn the ways of men, and become a prominent figure in Kuwaiti society. After God, he was the support, father, and teacher for a boy who was no older than 16. If we ask who this late uncle and father figure was, the answer is Yusuf Ali Kamal, one of the prominent figures and respected statesmen known for their public and municipal service in the State of Kuwait. He was the patriarch of the Kamal family in Kuwait and considered one of the leading faces of municipal work in Kuwait during the 1970s. He played an active role in urban planning and development during that era, serving as a member of the Municipal Council in 1972, where he participated in many organizational and developmental decisions for the city of Kuwait. He was re-elected and reconfirmed in trust for several consecutive terms. He left a mark on social and charitable work and was known as the patriarch of the Kamal family and a reference point for the family. His diwaniya was a prominent social and cultural hub where Kuwaiti statesmen, sheikhs, parliamentarians, officials, and citizens from all segments of Kuwaiti society would gather to discuss social and local issues.

The late Abu Ya’qoub made numerous contributions to charitable, social, and cultural endeavors. He was known for his support of cultural and social activities in the country and was instrumental in establishing the Cultural and Social Association in Kuwait during the 1960s. May God have mercy on him. He owned one of the most famous historical farms in the Al-Wafra area, which served as a family and social gathering place during the 1980s and 1990s. The main entrance gate bore the inscription “Sovereignty belongs to God alone.” The late was one of the most prominent figures in the country’s agricultural sector and among the first to believe that agricultural work is of vital importance to Kuwait and its people.

After a professional and social career spanning 90 years in Kuwait’s history, I say today: May God have mercy on you, my uncle and teacher. You have done enough and more for your country, your family, your relatives, and everyone who knew and worked with you. I say to you, Abu Ya’qoub: You were a father to me after my grandfather and my own father. You were my teacher and the best mentor I ever had, and a school from which I learned much. All of this is by the grace of God, the Exalted, and by your blessings, may God have mercy on you. Your departure is hard for me, but your noble and fragrant legacy is the remedy that eases the pain of your passing from me and from the people of your homeland. May God reward you with all good for me and for every charitable and virtuous deed you undertook.

In conclusion, I stand before the tragedy of loss and the departure of a man who was not merely a transmitter of knowledge, but a builder of character, an architect of ethics, and a teacher of the spirit before the mind. He departed from us the one who planted in us seeds of knowledge and watered them with patience and love, until their fruits ripened in our hearts and minds. He departed from us the one who taught us that knowledge of something is a trust for those who come after us, that love for the homeland and the land is an amanah (sacred trust), and that life is meant to be lived for the sake of others. He gave us of himself before he gave us his time.

He would smile at me when I succeeded, hold my hand when I stumbled, and always remind me that a person is measured by the impact they leave behind, not by their wealth or status. Today, as I mourn his passing from this transient world, my heart has lost one of its pillars. How could I not grieve, when he was the one who illuminated my path with a word and advice, refined me with a glance, and corrected me with a smile? Yet, my consolation is that he left me a legacy of knowledge that benefited me, values by which I live, and immortal memories whose imprint will remain within me as long as I live. His name will remain engraved in my heart and mind, for his passing is an irreplaceable loss. Here, I raise my hands in prayer, asking God to envelop him in His vast mercy, to make his grave a garden from the gardens of Paradise, to reward him with the best recompense for his kindness to me, and to reunite us with him in the Gardens of Bliss. May God have mercy on you, my uncle and father, Abu Yousef Ali Kamal. May your resting place be the Highest Paradise, and may your knowledge become a continuous charity that illuminates your path and ours on the Day of Judgment. Now, I say: May my Lord protect Kuwait, its Emir, and its people from all harm and evil, and may He make the grave of Abu Yaqoub a garden from the gardens of Paradise. And only God knows best.