Mahfuz (or Mohammed) (Harari: መሕፉዝ, Arabic: محفوظ, Portuguese: Mafudi, Somali: Maxfuud; died July 1517) was a Garad, Emir of Harar and Governor of Zeila in the Adal Sultanate.
He preferred to continue the conflicts with the Ethiopian Empire, as he desired to sway influence over the Muslim border provinces of Ifat, Fatagar, Dawaro, and Bale, which was in stark contrast to the policy of coexistence favored by Sultan Muhammad ibn Azhar ad-Din and his moderate faction.
Although the Walasma dynasty retained nominal control of the sultanate, Adal's power dynamics shifted significantly, impacting Ethiopia.
This gained support in Adal, Ethiopia's Muslim borderlands, and across the Red Sea, where traders welcomed the rise in war captives for the Arab slave markets.
According to Portuguese explorer Francisco Álvares, during his raids Mahfuz exclusively targeted Abyssinian soldiers capturing them however left civilians unharmed.
[17] He and Muhammad ibn Azhar ad-Din would descend upon the regions of Ifat, Dawaro and Fatagar which resulted in the slaying of 19,000 Christians within a year.
[18] According to Alvarez, upon reaching the age of majority, Emperor Lebna Dengel decided to forgo his observance of Lent and oppose the Imam in battle, despite the advice and wishes of his councilors and people.
He called to the Abyssinians a challenge to fight in single combat, and Gabra Endreyas, who had been a follower of Emperor Lebna Dengel's father, accepted and split the Imam's body into two from the lower-part of his neck to his shoulder with a two-handed sword.