City Sisters Presenters

Habiba, originally from Somalia, graduate in Marketing and currently works in Online Advertising. She joined Islam Channel in June 2007 to be part of the dawah project.

She loves travelling the world, sports, spending time alone thinking and reading. Her greatest dreams are to become a philanthropist, to create a foundation to support orphans, and most of all, to strive to be a true servant of God.

Habiba thrives to be a good example to those around her as she believes good character is the seed from which all good things grows. Her guidance and inspirations come from the Quran, Sunnah, and great men & women of Islam. She finds examples of the perfect love story, sincere sisterhood, pure belief, most praiseworthy parental relationships and almost all other aspects of life, beautifully detailed for us to take heed from.

One of the most inspiring surah from the Quran:

“By Time. Indeed, mankind is at loss. Except for those who have believed, done righteous deeds and advised each other to truth and advised each other to patience.” [Asr: 1-3] Imam Shafi said about this revelation that had it been the only revelation sent to mankind, it would have been enough. The surah highlights the value of time and the need to use time to perform righteous deeds.

Most inspiring quotes:

Judge yourself before you are judged - Umar ibn al-Khattab. We will be accountable for our each deed in the hereafter, thus one should continuously assess themselves in this world and make amends before that final judgment by Allah when there will not be an opportunity to make up for misdeeds.

Habiba feels blessed to be part of 'City Sisters' and hopes that the small efforts of the show will somehow revolutionise the perceived image of her Muslim sisters' around the world.

Habibah was one of the first presenters on Islam Channel when it started 5 years ago, on the social affairs program the “Hassan and Habibah Show”, and yes, Hassan is her husband!

She and Hassan are currently living in their home town in Essex, whilst they build their property portfolio, their retirement fund for their not so distant future, allowing her and Hassan to study the deen to a higher level.

As part of that journey, Habibah is currently learning the Arabic language, which she feels is a must for every Muslim, in order for them to understand their deen. This has included visiting many Arabic speaking countries, Egypt, Tunisia, Morocco, Saudia Arabia, UAE, where she has had a chance to practice her broken Arabic and insha'allah wishes to live for a short while in one of these countries to allow her to perfect her Arabic.

Habibah's travels have also taken her to America, France, Belgium, Spain, Greece, Turkey, New Zealand, Malaysia, Singapore and of course her ancestral home of Pakistan. This has partially fulfilled her love of history, where she has visited many ancients sites, structures and museums, and learned that Islam was a powerful and influential force for hundreds of years in all scopes of life; you name it and Islam has influenced it!

This coupled with her passion for reading; reading about people, in the past and present, namely autobiographies and of course reading about the only way of life of Islam – Habibah's main aim is to continually further her knowledge of the deen.

In order to help her do this and encourage the audience to do the same, she has joined now joined the 'City Sisters' team and is looking forward to working with her fellow veterans on this successful show.

A new member to the CS team is Nazia Jalali. She is a graduate in Architecture and currently resides with her family in West London, as a wife and proud mother of three children aged 8, 5 and 2. Although both she and her husband were brought up in the UK, they broke the traditional mould through their arranged marriage – her family is Pakistani and his family is Bengali.

She is fortunate to have had the opportunity to travel extensively around the world, visiting countries including Egypt, Saudia Aradia, Malaysia and Turkey. This has given her valuable insights into the lives of Muslims in different regions, and into some of the struggles they face.

One of the most defining experiences of her life was her time in Syria, where she stayed for several months, accompanied by her husband and daughter. There she had the opportunity to read Islamic studies and tajweed of Quran, in one of the most historical cities of the Muslim world – Damascus.

As a Muslim lifestyle writer, she has had an invaluable opportunity to investigate and address many subjects relevant to Islam and Muslims, with topics covering the individual, political and social issues faced by Muslims living both in the West and abroad. Of particular interest to her are education of Muslim children, and the challenges faced by Muslim women and their families in maintaining a strong Islamic identity and upholding Islamic values, whilst living in a non-Muslim society.

She is a passionate believer in healthy living, according to the Sunnah of the Prophet (saw). She also has a interest in Islamic Art and architecture, and is a keen oil painter herself.

Her ambition in life is to continue to learn about the deen, and make a real contribution to Muslim Society. Through her involvement with CS, we hope she will share her experiences and bring a fresh, dynamic perspective to the show, Inshallah.

Hi my name is Liz.

I have been a Muslim for almost 2 years Masha Allah, and I have never been happier! Before Islam I used to tell everyone I was an atheist but the truth is I had never really researched religion fully enough to make that statement. And as soon as I started looking in to Islam….look what happened Masha Allah!!

I have been married for 2 years and my husband and I live together in Gravesend – which is Kent for those of you who don’t know!! Currently no children…but Insha Allah watch this space – I really want to have a big family !!

I studied at Greenwich University where I got my BA (Hons) in English literature and my MA by Research also in English lit. As you can probably guess I’m a passionate reader, I enjoy all the classics and some modern titles too; I also enjoy writing and have written some short stories and I have a passion for poetry.

After all those years of studying I blew off some steam by inter-railing through Europe for a month. Which was really exciting I covered most of Europe in a month – so it was a pretty hectic schedule! I love train travel you get see so much more of the country your visiting – and its greener Masha Allah!!

I am currently working in the fundraising department of an Education and social welfare charity based in East London, I really enjoy the job as its rewarding, challenging and no two days are the same. During my time there I have organised various fundraising events as well working a lot on the website and e-fundraising.

I love cooking (– although I’m still learning and building up my repertoire!), and I love hanging out my friends and family – my friends would probably consider me to be a bit of a joker but I think its important to laugh everyday Insha Allah!! We are very fortunate in Kent to have established a close community and we hold weekly circles and other Islamic events.

Since I taking my shahada I have been kept very busy researching Islam and constantly finding out new things about the religion. I love meeting new people with whom I can share and compare my experiences; there is so much we can learn from others and one of the many great things about Islam is that there is so much diversity. I hope that in the future I will become more effective at giving Dawah and propagating the message of Islam – I’m sure that City Sisters is a great place to start Insha Allah!

Since Ayesha came onto our screens in City Sisters her life has been quite active; she has learnt more about the deen, how Muslimah’s are improving their community and sharing a few laughs with her fellow Presenters!

Ayesha currently works at a specialist hospital very much close to her heart that helped both her parents through difficult times. This is why she feels it is important to give something back to those who have helped you.

Eager to learn more about the deen, Ayesha attends talks and gatherings and finds it an excellent way to meet new sisters and broaden your social network. She especially supports sisters who have set up their own businesses, organisations and clubs which only highlights what Muslim women have to offer to the community.

She is also keen to travel and discover Allah SWT creation. After her trip to China-which she never dreamed of going to- she would love to explore different cultures and especially meet Muslims in non-Muslim countries to learn how they live by the deen and reveal the beauty of Islam to others around them.

Ayesha is very much close to her growing family, Alhamdulillah. The little additions of nieces and nephews bring joy to the grandparents whilst driving their parents crazy but she wouldn’t have it any other way!

In the midst of things, she enjoys socialising with her friends, is keen on painting artwork and designing jilbabs, doing various fun outdoor activities and eating good chocolate ice cream!

In all Ayesha is very much looking forward to City Series 3- more sisters to know and more interesting topics to tackle to ensure City Sisters still captures the heart of women from all backgrounds to illustrate a ‘today Muslimah’. Only a quarter of a century years old, she has yet to accomplish many more things, Insha’Allah.

One message she would like everyone to ponder is in the following verse of the Holy Quran in Surah Nasr:

"When, comes the Help of Allah, and Victory, (1) And thou dost see the People enter Allah's Religion in crowds, (2) Celebrate the Praises of thy Lord, and pray for His Forgiveness: for He is Oft-Returning (in Grace and Mercy). (3)"

"Being a Muslimah is the best gift any women could have!"

Shubina Zaman( Ummi Yasin), was born and raised in the U.K. She thrives upon the blessings and responsibility of being a Slave of Allah, wife and mother of five children ages from 21 to 3..

After studying social sciences her solicitude to dispel the negative stereotypes that have been associated against muslim women in the Western world are being fortified as new controversies unfold everyday.

Whilst she continues on her path for seeking knowledge in the Deen, she devotes her energy reaching out and inspiring Muslim women to earn reward through the trials and tribulations that Allah has decreed. Inspiration from the Quran “And We will certainly reward you after disciplining you with something of fear and hunger and some loss of substance and of lives and of fruits (of your toils). Give good tidings to the patiently persevering; (al baqarah:155)

Her avidity to enrich lives and re-strengthen the women of this Ummah towards success stems from being a foster carer, a prolific speaker amongst the community and a traveller through Europe and the far Middle East. Fostering the young minds from different religions and principalities has really put her at the forefront to understanding society at its most troubled levels. Her favourite ayah when Allah swt says “And And hold fast, all together, by the rope which Allah (stretches out for you), and be not divided among yourselves; and remember with gratitude Allah's favour on you.(al imran 103)

Her life experience will unequivocally bring a new twist to the new series of City Sisters 3!