According to the British "Telegraph" report on the 16th, British Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Simon Collis confirmed that he converted to Islam and completed the Hajj (Mecca). After the news broke, he received congratulations from across the Islamic world.

The matter became public after a photo of Collis and his wife wearing traditional Muslim pilgrimage clothing appeared on Twitter. In the photo, the two are standing in front of the British Consulate in Mecca.

While other diplomats are believed to have converted to Islam in the past, Collis is believed to be the first British ambassador to perform the Hajj.

The 60-year-old diplomat, who speaks fluent Arabic, later confirmed the information on Twitter. He wrote: "After living in a Muslim society for 30 years and before marrying my wife Huda, I converted to Islam. ”

The news triggered a wave of congratulations online from Saudi Arabia and the entire Islamic world. Many Muslims salute him with the term "Haji Simon". Adding "Haji" before a person's name indicates that the person has completed the Hajj to Mecca.

Colliss’s wife is Syrian and he chose to embrace Islam shortly before their marriage in 2011. While some of his fellow diplomats are aware of the incident, it has not yet been made public in the Saudi capital. The British Foreign Office declined to comment, saying Collis's religious beliefs were a personal matter.

Colliss has served in the Middle East for a long time and became ambassador to Saudi Arabia in early 2015. Previously, he served as the British Ambassador to Syria from 2007 to 2012. He angered the Syrian authorities at the time for criticizing the Assad government's crackdown on peaceful demonstrators.

After Britain severed diplomatic relations with Syria in February 2012, Collis left Damascus.