Muhammad ibn Ali al-Sanusi

Muhammad ibn Ali al-Sanusi (b. 12 Rabi' al-Awwal 1202/22 December 1787, Wasita near Mostaganem – d. 9 Safar 1276/7 September 1859) was the founder of the Sanusiyya order. He studied at the Qarawiyyin in Fez and became a disciple of Ahmad ibn Idris in Mecca. He opened his first zawiya on Mount Abu Qubays in Mecca in 1837, then relocated to Cyrenaica and in 1854/1856 established the major zawiya at Jaghbub as the movement's spiritual and administrative headquarters and a leading educational centre. He died at Jaghbub in 1859 and was buried in the zawiya. There is no dispute over the burial site; however, the shrine/qubba was demolished by the Gaddafi regime in 1984 and, according to reports, his remains were removed, so no intact grave survives today. The given coordinate is oasis/town-level (not tomb-specific). (Source: TDV Encyclopedia of Islam "Senûsî, Muhammed b. Ali"; en.wikipedia "Sanusiyya"/"Jaghbub".)