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. Although he was originally only emir of a small region he would rise to become leader of Adal due to his popularity, wielding more power than the sultan of Adal. He is often known as the "Captain of Zeila" in medieval texts.

According to Ethiopian historian Mohammed Hassen, he was either of Harla or Harari origin. However Marco Demichelis claims he was of Somali origin, his ethnic origins of Somali descent is also supported by Sidney R. Welsh. In contrast, Daryll Forde considers him an ethnic Afar. Mahfuz was the governor of Zeila, a historic city on the Somali coast.

Mahfuz began to dominate politics in the 1480s, being awarded multiple titles. 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. Mahfuz had successfully led expeditions into Abyssinia's heartland, including Shewa, something the Adal sultans had failed to accomplish in the previous years.

Medieval Portuguese missionary Francisco Álvares described the aftermath following the invasion of Fatagar by Mahfuz:

Mafude took them all prisoners, and he ordered the peasants to be separated from the men-at-arms, and he ordered the cultivators to go in peace, and to sow for next year much wheat and barley for when he should come, so that he and his people might find enough to eat for themselves and their horses. And he said to the men-at-arms: ‘Scoundrels who eat the King’s bread, and guard his lands so badly, all of you to the sword;’ and he ordered fifteen men-at-arms to be killed, and returned with great booty, and without any opposition what ever.

By the 1490s, political leadership shifted from Muhammad ibn Azhar ad-Din to Mahfuz. Although the Walasma dynasty retained nominal control of the sultanate, Adal's power dynamics shifted significantly, impacting Ethiopia. Mahfuz, unhappy with Muhammad's policy of compromise with the Christian neighbor, called for jihad. 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. He made strong connections with the Arabia and sent slaves to the Sherif of Mecca. The Sherif rewarded him with a green silk standard and a tent of black velvet embroidered with gold. He was also made the Sheikh of Zeila by the Sherif, which made Mahfuz responsible for bringing the Key of Abyssinia to him.

Francisco Álvares states that his invasions began during the reign of Eskender, and lasted 25 years. Mahfuz is reported to have caused the deaths of Ethiopian Emperors Na'od and Eskender. The British explorer, Richard Burton asserted that Mahfuz had offered a bribe to one of Emperor Eskender's escorts in order to orchestrate the emperor's murder. According to the emperor Sarsa Dengel chronicles, Mahfuz was linked to the Malassay army unit.

In his later life Mahfuz would also periodically continue to lead raids into the frontier provinces of Abyssinia for a number of years. He selected the season of Lent for his attacks, when the defenders were weakened by their fasts. He raided the Amhara, Shewa, and Fatagar provinces south of the Awash River. During his raids Mahfuz exclusively targeted Abyssinian soldiers capturing them however left civilians unharmed. 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.