KUALA LUMPUR, 18 JANUARY 2024 – Andre Pierre Berliner, 64, was at the PERKIM Headquarters at Jalan Sultan Azlan Shah, Kuala Lumpur to declare his Shahadah. “I revert to Islam because I sincerely wish to support and aid the Palestinians at the West Bank and Gaza”, he said.
He was there with his two best friends, Dr. Osama Odeh the Palestinian manager of an olive factory, and German entrepreneur Zakaria Abdullah. Two other friends, Abu Zarim Mohd Yusof and Mohd Firdaues Mohd Noor also attended the event.
Berliner took the Muslim name of Assad. He has lived for 60 years in Muslim communities and knows the Islamic culture. He works as a manager in a German Company supplying merchandise to Germany and Europe. He was born in Alemana Democratic Germany in 1960 but his family moved to Mali Bamako, Africa, a Muslim country. Later, the family moved to Lebanon, then Syria where he completed his education in a Russian school in Damascus. His family later returned to Germany where they were always visited by a Palestinian friend, Yasser Arafat.
In 1990, he decided to move to China and lived there for 15 years. Then he relocated to Indonesia where he spent another 15 years and later in 2008, he moved to Malaysia.
Ust. Sulaiman Ding, the Dakwah and Human Development Officer prepared and guided Assad for Shahadah in Arabic and in English. The five pillars of Islam and the Articles of Faith were explained to him. He was reminded of the responsibilities of a Muslim and also his duties towards his non-Muslim family. Allah SWT is the only one he should worship and he must try to avoid all things forbidden in Islam.
Dato Hj Mohamad Nordin Ibrahim, the Assistant Secretary General of PERKIM witnessed the shahadah while Dato Hj Razali Shahabudin followed up with a prayer of thanks.
Assad is encouraged to attend the classes organised by PERKIM and any other class organised by the mosques and religious departments in his vicinity.
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At the close of the event Assad was presented with a kit containing a prayer mat, a sarong and fez, and books to facilitate his learning about Islam.
Also present at the event was Mr. Firdaus Lokman Tah, the Director of the Communication and Media Unit.
Assad (centre) was given clear information about Islam in English by Sulaiman Ding (right).
Assad (right) was present with his close friend, Dr Osama Odeh from Palestine (second from right) and Zakaria Abdullah from Germany.
Sulaiman Ding guided Assad to recite the two shahadah words while witnessed by Dato’ Razali (blue batik).
Assad read the translation of the syahadah in English.
Happiness is clearly seen on Assad’s countenance after his “syahadah”.
Zakaria (in green) hugged Assad as a brother in Islam.
Dato’ Razali led the thanksgiving prayer after converting to Islam.
Assad completed his personal details after the conversion.
Datuk Nordin (right) presented a special edition Al-Quran for new reverts to Assad.
