of Saudi Arabia in the early 1970s Abdul Basit travelled to several places, including: •
1951, Saudi Arabia: He did the
Hajj pilgrimage accompanied by his father and recited the Quran in the
Masjid-al-Haram in
Mecca and the
Prophet's Mosque in
Medina. •
1960, Moscow: Accompanied President
Gamal Abdel Nasser on his visit to the
Soviet Union and became the first
Qari to recite the
Quran in the
Kremlin. •
1961, Morocco: Spent a month during
Ramadan visiting at the invitation of
King Mohammed V, who offered him Moroccan citizenship and position as a reciter at the royal court, both of which he declined. The visits reflected his close personal relationship with the king, reinforced
Egypt–Morocco ties, and were widely celebrated by Egyptian media. •
Pakistan: Made several visits during his career, including 1961 and 1987 recitations at the
Badshahi Mosque in
Lahore, and a 1967 performance in the presence of
Sheikh Khalil al-Husary. •
1963, Algeria: Visited post-independence Algeria, where he was received by
President Ahmed Ben Bella at Martyrs’ Square in
Algiers and recited at the
Ketchaoua Mosque following its rededication from a
cathedral. •
1966, South Africa: Arrived in
Johannesburg after a year of preparation by the local Islamic community; his performances included
Surah Al-Hujurat (
verse 13) which carried a subtle social message, while he maintained an apolitical stance during his one-month visit. •
1980, India: Visited
Darul Uloom Deoband during its centenary celebrations, reciting the Quran before audiences including Prime Minister
Indira Gandhi. reciting at
Centenary Celebration of Darul Uloom Deoband, with former Prime Minister of India
Indira Gandhi in the background. •
1985, Paris, France: Held a one-hour event at the
Palais de Congrès Theater attended by approximately 4,000 people, half of whom were non-Muslims and the rest
French Muslims, Moroccans, Tunisians, and Egyptians; he noted in interviews that he wore a suit for the first time in his life to move around the city discreetly. •
Syria –
Damascus in 1955, and
Aleppo in 1956 • He also travelled to
Jerusalem, and read in the
Al-Aqsa Mosque as well as the
Ibrahimi Mosque in
Hebron in
Palestine and the
Umayyad Mosque in
Damascus and in other famous mosques in Asia, Africa, the United States, France and London.
Private Invitations From 1970 to 1977, Abd al-Basit Abd al-Samad visited
Kuwait during
Ramadan at the invitation of Shaykha Badriya Suud al-Sabah. He also made
Ramadan visits from 1978 to 1984 to
Abu Dhabi and
Sharjah, and from 1985 to 1987 to
Qatar, where he recited the
Quran and gained significant recognition and income. As an employee of the
Ministry of Religious Affairs (Egypt), he required official permission for international trips, even when invited privately; for example,
Gamal Abdel Nasser denied his request to visit
Iran in the early 1960s due to political tensions between the two countries. == Honours and awards ==