Arnoud Van Doorn (right) posing in front of The Kaaba.
Photo By:  vijestiummeta.com

Islam is one of the most misunderstood religions in the last two decades. Many labels of intolerance, radicals, and support for terrorist-style violence are pinned to adherents of Islam. These accusations are increasingly prevalent in Western countries. The victims are immigrants.

The five figures on this list have one thing in common. They used to believe that Islam was a religion that caused chaos in the world. They persistently spread the discourse of cornering the religion that developed for the first time from this Arabian peninsula.

However, lately these persistent Islamic haters are actually interested in the teachings of the Prophet Muhammad. They changed their old beliefs, became fully embraced Islam and recognized the oneness of God.

What kind of story did they suddenly change their bad perception of Islam, then become devout adherents? Here's the summary

Daniel Streich

Daniel Streich. Photo By: u2screative.blogspot.con

The member of the Swiss People's Party (SVP) was once a well-known Islamist. Daniel Streich strongly opposed the construction of mosques in his country during the 1990s.

The site islamicbullettin.com reports that Streich was a devout Christian. He was raised with Christian teachings and as a child had dreams of becoming a priest. But when he was a teenager his intentions changed. He began to enjoy politics and without hesitation he immediately became a member of a well-known party in Switzerland.

SVP is not a random party. It consists of scholars, scientists, students, and non-Muslim activists. This party is the number one opponent of the spread of Islam in Switzerland and Streich had been the most vocal in calling for the closure of mosques throughout the country.

In an attempt to get rid of Islam from Switzerland, this man instead studied the Koran and Islam. He hoped that by understanding the teachings of the Prophet Muhammad, he was able to undermine the faith of the Muslims. What happened, he was even fascinated by this rahmatan lil alamin religion.

The further Streich studied Islam, the more immersed he became in the beauty of the divine religion. He finally converted to Islam in 2010.

"I got a lot of differences when I studied Islam. This religion gave me logical answers to important life questions that I didn't find in my religion," he said.

Arnoud Van Doorn

Arnoud Van Doorn. Photo By: omroepwest.nl

Arnoud Van Doorn was the producer of 'Fitna', a film insulting the Prophet Muhammad released in 2008. Surprisingly, the Dutch anti-Islam activist later converted to Islam in early 2013.

He even performed the Hajj for the first time nine months after saying the shahada. He said he found peace after becoming a Muslim.

The news of Doorn becoming a Muslim became a big echo in the Western media at that time. Before converting to Islam, Doorn was the former deputy chairman of the Dutch Freedom Party (PVV) led by Geert Wilders, a Dutch politician known for his anti-Islam movement.

However, after studying Islam, Doorn finally decided to convert to Islam. He made the shahada on his Twitter account in Arabic and surprised everyone.

Doorn is a polite and gentle person. He believes that Islamophobia or discrimination against Islam and Muslims in Europe stems from Western media and government efforts to portray a dark image of Islam.

He even said that if people in Europe knew how beautiful and wise Islam is, then they would all become converts. "The more I read the Koran, the more I believe that Islam is a truly beautiful and wise religion," said Doorn.

After he converted to Islam, his former party colleagues had no contact with Doorn.

"I haven't spoken to Geert Wilders since I left the Freedom Party. I don't know why. When you leave the party, you basically don't exist anymore," Doorn said in an interview with the Ma'an News Agency (MNA).

Yusuf Estes

Yusuf Estes. Photo By: merdeka.com

Yusuf Estes is a Muslim convert from the United States. In fact, you could even say he used to be among the people who suffer from Islamophobia.

Estes was born to a devout Christian family in the Midwest, United States. His family had traditionally built churches and schools in the United States.

His great curiosity about Christian teachings made him want to visit other churches. He attended the Methodist church, Episcopal. Nazareth, Agape, Presbyterian and others.

Not only that, Estes also studied other religions such as Hinduism, Judaism, and Buddhism. But he didn't even care about the teachings of Islam. Estes once believed that Muslims were worshipers of cubes in the middle of the desert who loved violence.

In 1991, Estes started a business which later led him to visit abroad. The first country he visited was Egypt. In the land of the Pyramids, Estes met a Muslim man. One thing Estes had in mind about Muslims, "Terrorists!" Estes couldn't believe he had to deal with someone he hated so much.

How surprised Estes was, when they talked, it turned out that the Muslim man claimed to believe in the truth of the Bible and respect Jesus, or in Islam, called Prophet Isa.

They engaged in intimate conversation, then finally took Estes to visit the mosque. Finally he embraced Islam followed by his wife, children, father and in-laws.

Estes then studied religion in Egypt, Morocco and Turkey. Since 2006, Yusuf Estes has regularly appeared on PeaceTV, Huda TV, as well as the UK-based IslamChannel.

Terry Holdbrooks Jr

Terry Holdbrooks Jr. Photo By: witnesstoguantanamo.com

There are many ways for a person to convert to a Muslim. One of them is US military police officer Terry Holdbrooks Jr., who was a guard at Guantanamo prison.

It was in this prison that the US military detained the most dangerous figures of Al Qaeda and the Taliban. Holdbrooks served in the most horrific places on earth from 2002 to 2003.

Holdbrooks' conscience was disturbed when he saw the captives being treated like animals. One of the tortures that was often used to create stress was forcing prisoners to sleep on a cold floor, then the floor was flooded with cold water. Menstrual blood of the female guards was also often rubbed on the faces of the prisoners.

According to Holdbrooks, the guards were taught that those being held there were the worst people in the world. They were people who were hostile to the US and anti-democracy.

Even so, Holdbrooks saw an interesting fact. No matter how hard they were tortured, these prisoners remained strong. In their cell they smiled and prayed five times a day. The prisoners claimed that they were never afraid to face anything because they felt that God was always watching over them.

This young man was curious. He studied Islam and read the Koran. He also began to compare Islam with other faiths. Holdbrooks was beginning to enlighten.

"The Quran is the easiest book to understand in the world. It's simple. It's a guide for life," Holdbrooks said.

Since 2005, Holdbrooks was committed to converting to Islam. He slowly practiced all the teachings of Islam. He started a new life by giving up cigarettes and liquor. Holdbrooks also regularly prayed five times. Holdbrooks started voicing what was happening at Guantanamo. He wanted the world to know about the atrocities the US has committed against their enemies.

Ibrahim Killington

Ibrahim Killington. Photo By: @2015 Youtube

The tragedy of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks has contributed greatly to the growth of Islamophobia in the Western world, especially the United States. However, the incident also gave guidance to most people how great Islam is and then embraced it.

This is what happened to Ibrahim Killington. During the tragedy, he considered Muslims as criminals against humanity and intended to fight Islam.

However, in the midst of trying to join the US army, he got guidance from a radio broadcast. His mind was also interested in studying Islam further than what he understood.

Since then, he continued to explore Islam and eventually embraced this religion. His past which was only for drinking and having fun is no longer done, his activity is now only for worshiping in the mosque.