- 20% of recent Muslim converts in the U.K. cite global conflict as a catalyst for their conversion, with many seeking purpose, structure, and moral clarity.
- 18% of recent UK converts to Islam cite life events as the reason for their conversion.
Researchers at the Institute for the Impact of Faith in Life (IIFL) said global conflict was the most commonly cited motivation for recent conversions to Islam. They noted that this may support, “widespread claims of a rise in conversions to Islam amid the ongoing Israel-Gaza conflict”.
The report’s reads:
“Those who convert to Islam often do so in search of purpose. Compared with Christian converts, they are two and a half times more likely to be drawn to rituals, to display high levels of media scepticism, and to view the world as increasingly unjust. Taken together, these factors position Islam as a normative-structural framework that offers discipline, moral clarity, and a sense of meaning in a world perceived as unfair.”
The IIFL surveyed 2,774 people who had experienced a shift in religious belief. Whether they were adopting, changing or abandoning faith, and found sharp differences in motivation across religions.
For converts to Islam, global conflict (20 percent) and a change in life events (18 percent)
The report added:
“This pattern may support media reports throughout late 2023 and 2024 identifying a visible increase in conversions to Islam following the most recent Israel-Gaza war.”
A recent Pew Research report analysed13 Muslim majority countries. It revealed that very small percentages of the overall adult population have left Islam, yielding high Muslim retention rates.
The U.S. and Kenya have the highest levels of “accession,” or entrance, into Islam, with 20% of U.S. Muslims and 11% of Kenyan Muslims saying they were raised in another religion or with no religion.
Among those who have switched into Islam, most say they were raised Christian. Christianity experiences the highest ratios of departures to conversions, resulting in the largest net losses.
