Arnoud van Doorn - who converted into Islam after creating a movie mocking Prophet Mohamed - has decided to visit the Maldives.
Minister of Islamic Affairs, Dr Mohamed Shaheem Ali Saeed revealed through Twitter that discussions regarding Arnoud van Doorn's visit to the Maldives had already concluded, with him accepting the invitation of the Minister.
Arnoud van Doorn is set to deliver a sermon regarding the reasons why he had converted into Islam.
Popular Islamic scholars, Sheikh Yasir Qadhi and Mufti Ismail Menk are also scheduled to arrive in the Maldives in the coming months.
Arnoud van Doorn is a former far-right politician from the Dutch Freedom Party (PVV) of Geert Wilders. In December 2011, the party broke with Van Doorn, because of the "mistakes he made with the budget." He decided to become a Muslim a few years later, after learning about the teachings of Islam. Until May 2014, he served as a member of The Hague City Council for the PvdE, a political party based on Islam. At the moment he is President of the European Dawah Foundation, and Ambassador of Celebrity Relations for the Canadian Dawah Association in Europe. He is a Member of the Board and Official Representative for the PvdE in the City Council of The Hague.
Van Doorn announced his conversion to Islam in 2013. Soon after, he performed Hajj to Saudi Arabia and visited the Prophet's Mosque to deliver an apology and show remorse before the scholars there for his involvement in an attempt to spread hatred against Islam. He said that the overwhelming reaction of Muslims around the world against the film, made him interested to learn more that led to his decision to convert to Islam. He stated, "Right now I am still feeling regret for having to distributed the film (Fitna). I have a responsibility to correct the mistakes that i've done in the past." Later his eldest son, Iskander Amien De Vrie, followed him in converting to Islam in 2014 after seeing his father becoming more peaceful and making progressive changes since embracing Islam.