A list of some Sunni-to-Shia converts

This article lists some prominent converts from the Sunni sect to the path of Shia Islam. Many of the people listed are from different walks of life. Notice that many of them were either martyred or imprisoned. Infact some of them are still wanted in their respective home countries! This list is not exhaustive but serves to provide insight on just how many people have embraced this beautiful faith and found it superior.



NOTE: All names are clickable links leading to further information.

1. Allama Muhammad Tijani Samawi
   
   
   

   
   
   

   Allama Tijani Samawi was a famous Sunni Sufi Imam from Tunisia who converted to Shia Islam and has since written many books full of evidences for the path of Ahlul Bayt being the right one. He has studied in Hawzat in Iran and engaged in many debates with Sunni polemicists. His famed works include “Then I was guided” and “To be with the truthful”
   
   
   

   
   


2. Allama Hamid Raza Sultani
   
   
   
   

   
   
   

   Allama Hamid Raza Sultani is an Ex-Sunni preacher from Pakistan who now teaches people about the path of Tashayyu. He is an amazing orator, and is adored by many people because of his vast knowledge.
   
   
   

   
   


3. Mujahid Abdul Karim
   
   
   
   

   
   
   

   Sheikh Mujahid converted in the 80’s to Tashayyu and is most famous for leading the historical “Watts Gang Truce” in 1992 in which four infamous rival gangs from California came to peace. He is also very active in the black American community and has led many delinquents to the path of islam.

   
   
   
   
   
   
   


4. Edoardo Mahdi Agnelli (Martyred)
   
   
   

   
   
   

   Edoardo was the son of the Italian owner of Fiat Automobiles. He converted to Sunnism and then later to Shiism during the ‘79 revolution, to the dismay of his father and was mysteriously martyred. Here he is praying alongside Ayatollah Khamenai.
   
   
   

   
   


5. Ali Adil Shah I
   
   
   

   
   
   

   Ali Adil Shah I was a prominent Sultan in 16th century India who converted to Shiism from his previously Sunni orthodox views.
   
   
   

   
   


6. Prince Kabir Bello
   
   
   

   

   Prince Kabir Bello is a professional footballer from Nigeria. He has played in the 2007 FIFA World Cup in Japan. He converted to Shiism after finding it made more sense.
   
   
   

   
   


7. Tajul Muluk (Imprisoned)
   
   
   

   
   
   

   Ustadh Tajul Muluk is an Indonesian Shiite Activist who is imprisoned on charges of blasphemy and propagating ‘deviant shia beliefs’. After he converted from Sunnism he faced much backlash as Shia beliefs are shunned by the greater community.
   
   
   

   
   


8. Abdillahi Nassir
   
   
   
   

   
   
   

   Sheikh Abdillahi Nassir is a Kenyan scholar who converted to Shiism during the Iranian revolution and has since become a massive ambassador for Shiism in Africa.
   
   
   

   
   


9. Öljaitü (Muhammad Khodabandeh)
   
   
   

   
   
   

   Öljeitü was an Ilkhanid Dynasty ruler in the 14th century. Initially a baptized Christian, he converted then to Buddhism, then Sunnism and finally to Shiism under the influence of Allama al Hilli.
   
   
   

   
   


10. Al Qadi Al Numan (Ismaili)
    
    
    

    
    
    

    Al Qadi Al Numan was the official historian of the Fatimid Ismaili Dynasty. When helping formulate a structured Ismaili legal law he relied upon works by Twelver scholars quoting Imams Jafar and Al Baqir.
    
    
    

    
    
    
    
    
    


11. Qasim Umar Sokoto (Martyred)
    
    
    

    
    
    

    Shahid Qasim Umar Sokoto was a religious leader in Sokoto Nigeria, and associate of Sheikh Zakzaky. He was an advocate for Shia rights, and called the “Sheikh Nimr of Africa”. He died as a result of his injuries sustained from being fired on by Nigerian forces at a protest.

    
    


12. Shaikh Junayd
    
    
    

    
    
    

    Sheikh Junayd was the leader of the Safavid order of Sufism in the 15th century and successfully managed to transform his Sufi dynasty to specifically Shia teachings.
    
    
    

    
    


13. Malcolm Shabazz (Martyred)
    
    
    

    
    
    

    Malcom Shabazz was the grandson of civil rights activist Malcolm X. He visited Iran alongside Muhammad Ali and in his later years became an outspoken Shia muslim. He was assassinated in Mexico while on a trip.
    
    
    

    
    
    
    
    
    


14. Hassan Shehata (Martyred)
    
    
    

    
    
    

    Sheikh Hassan Shehata was a famous Sunni Sheikh from Egypt and personal scholar for the Egyptian armed forces. After his conversion he spent much time propagating the teachings of Ahlul Bayt before him and his few followers were mercilessly beaten and his corpse was dragged through the streets.
    
    
    

    
    


15. Riad Al Solh (Martyred)
    
    
    

    
    
    

    Riad was the former president of Lebanon and his father was a former governor for the Ottoman Empire. In 1932 he was the one to implement a the pact that assures the President, Prime Minister and Speaker of Parliament belong to Marionite Christian, Sunni and Shia denominations. Although his conversion to Shiism was secret he was assassinated for alternative reasons.
    
    
    

    
    


16. Ali Al Sulayhi (Ismaili) (Martyred)
    
    
    

    
    
    

    Ali Al Sulayhi was the founder and sultan of the Sulayhid dynasty that ruled much of Yemen in the 11th century. His dynasty was converted to an Ismaili one even though his father was a strict Shafi’i Sunni Imam. Notice the third testimony on this dinar from his dynasty.
    
    
    

    
    


17. Ibrahim Zakzaky (Imprisoned)
    
    
    

    
    
    

    Sheikh Zakzaky is the face of Shia islam in Nigeria. He was a convert from Sunnism who was fascinated by the Iranian revolution. He later studied to become a cleric while in Iran. Within the span of less than 30 years he helped increase the Shia population in Nigeria from virtually 0 to over 3 million.
    
    
    

    
    


18. Sheikh Esam Al Emad
    
    
    

    
    
    

    Sheikh Esam Al Emad is a Yemeni Shia Twelver who was a former Sunni scholar. He lost faith in the Sunni tradition while studying Sunni hadith science and realized that there was a conspiracy against the prophets family. He found himself unable to reconcile the blatant disregard for the AhulBayt in Sunni works.
    
    
    

    
    


19. Sheikh Tariq Yusuf Al Masri 
    
    
    

    
    
    

    Sheikh Tariq came to the path of Ahlul Bayt after he realized the crimes of Abu Bakr and Umar towards the prophet’s family which is kept hidden from the masses.
    
    
    

    
    


20. Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf
    
    
    

    
    
    

    Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf was a professional NBA player, in the league for 9 years. He still holds one of the best Free-throw percentages in NBA history. Mahmoud was famous for being the first NBA player to reject standing for the USA national anthem because he felt it conflicted with his values. He converted to Sunni islam and then later settled upon Shiism. I have met the brother personally!
    
    
    

    
    


21. Dmitriy Kostov
    
    
    

    
    
    

    Dmitriy is a native Russian who converted from Christianity to Sunni Islam after reading Islamic texts like the Quran. He became intrigued by Shiism when a friend sent him a video condemning them, later on after reading Nahj Al Balagha and pondering upon its magnificence and how it all seemed to make sense, he converted to Shia.

    
    


22. Ibrahim Mohammad
    
    
    

    
    
    

    Sheikh Ibrahim is a Shia convert from South Africa. He has studied for 8 years at Egypts Al Azhar university and Mecca for 1 year before converting to the path of Shia Islam.
    
    
    

    
    


23. Sheikh Ahmed Amin Al-Antaki
    
    
    

    
    
    

    Sheikh Al Antaki was a Sunni Shafi’i scholar who had studied at Al Azhar institute In the late 1800s. During his studies he recalls he began to find irreconcilable inconsistencies in his school of faith. At the same time he came across the book “Al Murajaat by Sharafuddin Al Musawi which helped open the doors for his conversion to Tashayyu. He has written many books on this.
    
    
    

    
    


24. Sheikh Jehad Ismail
    
    
    

    
    
    

    Sheikh Jehad is a Kuwaiti born cleric who had studied in Al Azhar for a long period before looking in to the Madhab of Ahlul Bayt. His father once met with Ayatollah Kashef Al Ghitaa, and this incident inspired Jehad to look further into the Shia school. Eventually he converted and went to Iran to complete his religious education.
    
    
    

    
    


25. Abd al Hakim Carney
    
    
    

    
    
    

    Sheikh Carney was once the highest ranking American-born Shiite scholar. He was a committed academic having converted from Christianity to Sunni Islam in his teenage years and then to Shiism. He has published many academic papers and articles on different topics in the Shia faith - he was deeply loved. Unfortunately he passed away due in his home in 2007, and the cause of death has not been confirmed.
    
    
    

    
    


26. Sheikh Usama AbdulGhani
    
    
    

    
    
    

    Sheikh Abdul Ghani is an American Shia convert from Washington D.C., his family converted to Shiism when he was in his mid teens. In his 20s he visited Iran to complete his studies before becoming a cleric situated in the United States. He is a well-known speaker in North America.
    
    
    

    
    


27. Sheikh Omari Mayunga (Sheikh Ali Jumaa Mayunga)
    
    
    

    
    
    

    Sheikh Jumaa was born in Tanzania and went to study religion in Kenya, when he returned to Dar us Salaam he had been indoctrinated with the Wahabbi worldview at the hands of Sheikh Abdullah Nasir. Fortunately he had come to meet Ayatollah Sayed Akthar Rizvi, who answered all of his misconceptions on the Shia and led him to the path of Tashayyu. He has written many untranslated books on Shia topics.
    
    
    

    
    


28. Molvi Ismail Zabeeh Deoband
    
    
    

    
    
    

    Maulana Ismail was a student at Dar Ul Uloom Deoband who converted to Shiism after studying comparative religion later on in life. He was also appointed to Pakistans National Assembly in 1974 and was thus involved in the creation of Pakistan and was an associate of Muhammad Ali Jinnah.
    
    
    

    
    


29. Qari Sakhawat Husain
    
    
    

    
    
    

    Sakhawat Husain is an ex-Deobandi scholar who converted to Shiism and is a celebrated scholar in Pakistan.
    
    
    

    
    


30. Abdul Kareem Mushtaq (Martyred)
    
    
    

    
    
    

    Abdul Karim Mushtaq was a scholar from Lahore, Pakistan who converted to Shiism and continued to propagate his beliefs until he was martyred by the terrorist group Sipah-e-Sahaba in Karachi. He has written many books refuting the Sunni POV that can be found in the link above.
    
    
    

    
    


31. Dr. Hamid Algar
    
    
    

    
    
    

    Dr. Algar, UK born, was a practicing Sunni for many years before visiting Iran at the height of the Iranian revolution, there he became an important scribe and translator. He eventually converted to Shiism and had spent many years teaching Islamic subjects at Berkeley.
    
    
    

    
    


32. Amro Abdullah (Imprisoned)
    
    
    

    
    
    

    Amr Abdullah is an Egyptian Shiite convert and student of Sheikh Hassan Shehata. He was arrested and sentenced to a 5 year jail term in 2014 on accounts of blasphemy and speaking out against the crimes of the Sahaba.
    
    
    

    
    


33. Khalid Al Shimmary
    
    
    

    
    
    

    Khalid Al Shimmary grew up in a moderate Sunni household back in Kuwait after began to frequent Wahabbi mosques. He admits that he became a hater of the Shia, but after visiting some scholars to engage in discussion he found himself interested in Shiism. He converted to Shiism at the hands of Sheikh Yasser Al Habibm and now works with the FadakTV team.
    
    
    

    
    


34. Zulfiqar Al Maghrebi
    
    
    

    
    
    

    Zulfiqar Al Maghrebi is a Shia convert from Morocco. Very little is known about him because of a lack of his digital footprint. Being Shia is an offence in Morocco so he remains behind a mask. He is a researcher, debater and famous polemicist. Be sure to check out his video in the link. A few of them are translated online.
    
    
    

    
    


35. Abdullah Khallaf 
    
    
    

    
    
    

    Abdullah Khallaf is another Shia who converted at the hands of Sheikh Yasser Al Habib and fled to seek political asylum in the UK. He is wanted in Kuwait on charges of blasphemy. He is part of the FadakTV team, he is famous for being outspoken against the sahaba on his twitter page.
    
    
    

    
    


36. Brother Malik (6:38) 
    
    
    
    
    

    

    Brother Malik is a Libyan convert to Shiism who works for the Rafida team. He converted after he realized the superiority of the Shia school when he began to do his own research into the books.
    
    
    

    
    


37. Hicham Lachkar
    
    
    

    
    
    

    Hicham Lachkar is a Moroccan Shia convert from Sunnism. He owes his conversion to Tashayyu to Sheikh Yasser Al Habib. He runs the Fadak News segment of FadakTV channel.
    
    
    

    
    


38. Sheikh Yahya Seymour 
    
    
    

    
    
    

    Sheikh Yahya Seymour was born a Christian, then converted to Sunni islam, a few years later he chose to convert to Shia islam and pursue a religious education. He is fond of inter religious discussion, and now works as a researcher for Imam Husain TV
    
    
    

    
    


39. Marquel Mohammed
    
    
    

    
    
    

    Marquel Muhammad grew up in an African American community in Ohio. After spending much of his youth involved in crime and violence he came across the Nation of Islam. After years of studying Sunni Islam and Tasawwuf he was astounded by the story of Imam Husain. Because of that resounding message and captivating story he converted to Shia Islam.
    
    
    

    
    


40. Sheikh Nuru Mohammed 
    
    
    

    
    
    

    Sheikh Nuru Mohammed is a Nigerian born Shia cleric who converted from Sunnism to Shiism at an early age. His late father was a Sunni Imam and he himself served as a Sunni imam before he eventually became enlightened to the path of Ahlul-Bayt. Interestingly this Sheikh has 4 wives and 28 children thus far!
    
    
    

    
    


41. Amy Hodgkins
    
    
    

    
    
    

    Amy Hodgkins, now known as Zainab is a British convert to Shiism. She initially converted to Sunni islam and was warned to stay away from Shiism. Eventually she came across and read the book Peshawar Nights and it opened her eyes. She now works as a writer and presenter for islamic channels.
    
    
    

    
    


42. Nouri Sardar
    
    
    

    
    
    

    Nouri Sardar is a famous Poet and speaker about the Ahlul-Bayt, having performed in many different countries. He was originally Sunni but at the culmination of many months of researching deep into polemical arguments, he felt compelled to convert to Shiism after he learned about the tragic attack on the house of Lady Fatimah (sa).
    
    
    

    
    


43. Sheikh Rijal 
    
    
    

    
    
    

    Sheikh Rijal is from a small Island in Kenya. While studying Islam at his madrassas he was warned not to read Shia books as they were disbelievers. This intrigued him to listen to debates with shias. After finding the shia arguments more convincing he visited Yemen where he read Shia hadith books and converted to Tashayyu.
    
    
    

    
    


44. Badia Chenouili 
    
    
    

    
    
    

    Badia is the daughter of a Sunni Imam. After completing her A-level studies she began to inquire about other paths of Islam. She used to engage in talks with muslims on Ummah.com, she also met some amazing Shiites. After initially inquiring about the path of Tasawwuf, she was enamoured by the story of Ashura that she found in books of history, this led to her conversion.
    
    
    

    
    


45. Fahima Mahomed 
    
    
    

    
    
    

    Fahima grew up in South Africa in a Sunni family, she made some friends during her teenage and college years who introduced her to Shia islam and provided her with books such as Then I was guided by Allama Tijani. Eventually she found herself at home after visiting Shia gatherings and having her questions answered to her satisfaction.
    
    
    

    
    


46. Rebecca Masterton 
    
    
    

    
    
    

    Sis Masterton grew up in a Christian family before becoming intrigued with Islam while on a trip to Morocco. There she was inspired by a sister to convert to Sunni Islam. Eventually she came across the personalities of the Ahlul-Bayt and was in awe at books like Nahjul Balagha. After her eventual conversion to Shiism she continues to work as a speaker and lecturer about Islam in many avenues.
    
    
    

    
    


47. Abdullah Al-Dahdouh (Martyred) 
    
    
    

    
    
    

    Shahid Al-Dandouh was a Moroccan Sunni Imam who visited Qom, Iran in the 1980’s in order to convert to Shia Islam. After completing his studies in the seminaries he based himself in Belgium and founded the Imam Reza Mosque. In 2012 in a terrorist attack perpetrated by an extremist Salafi, he was martyred.
    
    
    

    
    


48. Ryan Morgan Christison 
    
    
    

    
    
    

    Ryan Morgan Christison is a convert from Australia. During his youth his friends would have discussions on topics of religion, and he eventually found himself intrigued with Islam. He practiced as a Hanafi and eventually converted to the path of Tashayyu thereafter. He has been featured on the Bayat Al Ghadeer channel on YouTube.
    
    
    

    
    


49. Peer Asif Ali Ghilani 
    
    
    

    
    
    

    Peer Asif Ali Gilani is a converted Shia scholar from Pakistan.  He was influenced by Agha Sardar Ali Jaan, who invited him to the right path. He converted by reciting the Shia Shahada in front of a large public crowd, he promised to defend the school of the Ahlubayt.
    
    
    

    
    


50. Bilal Muhammed 
    
    
    

    
    
    

    Bilal Muhammad is a famed academic who converted from Sunni Islam to Twelver Shiism. He is the author of now multiple books, most notably “Rise of the Qa’im”. He is famous on the forum ShiaChat under the name “Qa’im”. Currently he is working as a researcher at Berkeley and has published academic papers on different Islamic topics.