Believed to the first British diplomat of a senior rank, Britain’s ambassador to Saudi Arabia performed the holiest rite for Muslims - the Haj pilgrimage to Mecca after he converted to Islam. Pictures surfaced on Twitter last week as ambassador Simon Collis, 60 along with his wife Huda Mujarkech dressed is the traditional white Ihram robes standing outside the British consulate in Mecca.
Ambassador Collis responding to twitter messages said “May Allah bless you. Briefly, I converted to Islam after 30 years of living in Muslim societies and just before I married Huda.” Mr Collis is it said converted to Islam discreetly in 2011, shortly before his marriage. Conversion is a religious requirement for those wishing to marry a Muslim woman.
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office confirmed the news saying it was a private matter. Ambassador Collis is one of the most prominent figures in British society to convert to Islam. He will continue to use his English name but considers himself “a British ambassador who just happens to be Muslim.” He is one of the most experienced Arabists of the Foreign Office. In the past, he served as the Britain’s ambassador to Qatar, Syria and Iraq.
In London, the East London Mosque congratulated on “his journey to Islam. We hope that he is able to share his experiences from the has with his non-Muslim colleagues at the British embassy.” Other Twitter users congratulated the ambassador, including two members of the Saudi royal family.
This year some 1.86 million people will perform the Haj, including some 20,000 Britons.
