American activist and author Sean King is one of the prominent voices supporting the Palestinian cause (French)

The well-known American activist, author, and former pastor, Shaun King, and his wife announced their conversion to Islam, on Monday, with the first day of the holy month of Ramadan in the Arab and Islamic worlds.

King (45 years old) and his wife appeared in a video clip he posted on Facebook reciting the Shahada taught to them by a Muslim imam, and he attached this to a post in which he talked about his conversion to Islam on Sunday evening, coinciding with the beginning of the month of fasting.

King said in his post: “My wife and I just returned home after the evening prayer at our mosque in the Dallas area, Texas, where we together recited the Shahada and converted to Islam to begin the month of Ramadan. It was a beautiful, strong, and meaningful day for us that we will never forget.”

He added: "I will pray for you and ask you to continue to pray for us. We will begin fasting this morning with more than a billion Muslims around the world," referring to the start of fasting on the first day of Ramadan.

Regarding what is happening in the Gaza Strip, King said: “My heart goes out to my dear friends in Gaza, and I am proud that we were able to provide meals tonight to thousands of families from northern to southern Gaza, and we will do so every day of the month of Ramadan.”

King holds a master's degree from Arizona State University and taught high school civics for a brief period, before becoming a pastor and founding a church in Atlanta in 2008 called Courageous Church, which he led for 4 years, where he used social media to recruit new members, and was known as " Pastor Facebook.”

Supporter of Palestine

King was a regular writer for Daily Kos, the New York Daily News, and The Young Turks, founded several non-profit organizations, and is currently considered a prominent activist on social media and a prominent voice in support of the Palestinian cause, having devoted his posts since the start of the war. The Israeli army visited Gaza on October 7 to participate in the atrocities committed by Israeli forces against the Palestinians in Gaza, and to demand an end to the war of extermination and the liberation of the Palestinian territories from the occupation.

King announced late last December that the American company Meta (formerly Facebook) had banned his Instagram account, which was followed by more than 6 million people, because of his posts in support of the Palestinians.

He said at the time in response, "It is clear that (Facebook) and (Instagram) have decided to stand in the way of those who fight for human rights and dignity for Palestinians. I will not tolerate that. I will continue the struggle everywhere as much as I can."

King had previously complained that he and his family were exposed to death threats on an almost daily basis, without ruling out that the Tel Aviv government was behind the threats, but he added, “But we are safe.”

Since October 7, Israel has been waging a devastating war on the Gaza Strip, leaving tens of thousands of civilian victims, most of them children and women, in addition to an unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe, massive destruction of infrastructure, and a famine that has begun to afflict a number of areas, which led to Tel Aviv being brought before a court. International Justice on charges of genocide.

Source: Anadolu Agency