Armando Bukele Kattán was a Salvadoran businessman, intellectual, Muslim religious leader and father of the current president of El Salvador, Nayib Bukele. He was born in 1944 to Christian Palestinian parents who had emigrated from Bethlehem in the early 20th century. He converted to Islam later in his life and founded four mosques in El Salvador, including the first one in 1992. He also published books on Islam, physics and relativity. He died in 2015 at the age of 70.
Early Life and Education
Armando Bukele Kattán was born in San Salvador, the capital of El Salvador, on December 16, 1944. His parents were Humberto Bukele Salman and Victoria Kattán de Bukele, who were Christian Palestinians from Jerusalem and Bethlehem respectively. They had arrived in El Salvador as part of a wave of Palestinian immigration that started in the late 19th century and continued until the 1940s. According to Wikipedia, many Palestinians settled in El Salvador because of its similarity to their homeland in terms of climate, geography and culture.
Armando Bukele Kattán completed his high school studies at the Liceo Salvadoreño, a prestigious private school in San Salvador. In 1967, he graduated as a doctor in industrial chemistry from the University of El Salvador, the oldest and largest public university in the country.
Business and Philanthropy
Armando Bukele Kattán was a successful entrepreneur who founded several companies in different sectors, such as textiles, commerce, pharmaceuticals, advertising and media. He was also involved with the philanthropic efforts of the Kiwanis Club, a community service institution that brings together entrepreneurs and professionals. According to Ultima Hora, a Salvadoran news outlet, he supported various social causes, such as education, health, sports and culture.
Religious Leadership and Publications
Armando Bukele Kattán converted to Islam sometime after his marriage to Olga Ortez de Bukele, who was also a Christian. He became an imam of the Salvadoran Islamic Community and was part of the Islamic Organization for Latin America and the Caribbean. He founded four mosques during his lifetime, including the first one in El Salvador in 1992. He also participated in interfaith dialogues and was a founding member of the Council of Religions for Peace of El Salvador.
Armando Bukele Kattán was also an intellectual who wrote books on various topics. He published The ABCs of Islam, a book that explains the basic principles and practices of Islam for beginners. He also wrote Clarifying Concepts in Physics, a book that challenges some of the established theories of physics and proposes alternative explanations based on relativity. In 2017, two years after his death, a posthumous book titled The Precise Relativity of the Point was published, which was a compilation of his thoughts gathered from his Twitter account and his program “Clarifying Concepts”.
Legacy and Family
Armando Bukele Kattán died on November 30, 2015, at the age of 70. He left behind a legacy of business, philanthropy, religion and intellect that influenced many people in El Salvador and beyond. He also left behind a large family of 10 children, one of whom is Nayib Bukele, the current president of El Salvador.
Nayib Bukele is a center-right politician who won the presidential elections in 2019 with 53 percent of the vote. He is not very religious but says he believes in Jesus. His wife, Gabriela Rodríguez de Bukele, has Jewish roots. Nayib Bukele visited Israel in 2018 as part of an international mayors conference sponsored by the Israeli government. He also posted a picture of himself at the Western Wall on his social media accounts.
Armando Bukele Kattán was a remarkable man who lived a diverse and rich life. He was a father of El Salvador’s president and a Muslim leader who contributed to the development and harmony of his country.
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