Knud Holmboe
Knud Holmboe (1902 – 1931) was a Danish journalist who converted to Islam after travels in North Africa. Holmboe was born in Horsens, Denmark, in 1902, and started travelling to Morocco as a young man to familiarize himself with Islam and learn the Arabic language.
He converted to Islam and changed his name to Ali Ahmed. Driving through the Sahara in an old Chevrolet, he left the beaten track to discover the communities and landscape of the desert. Knud Holmboe was shocked to observe the violent daily life in the North African colonies. Based on these travel experiences, he produced a book in 1931 entitled Desert Encounter (Danish: Ørkenen Brænder) in which he condemned the colonial powers. The book was immediately banned in Italy. The Italian colonial powers were outraged at the content of the book that described a Libya where the Muslim population were brutally treated and menaced.
Knud Holmboe was an open minded man, and had a good understanding of the Arabs. After completing his book Knud Holmboe started on his hajj towards the holy city of Mekka (Makkah).
In circumstances that were never fully explained, Knud Holmboe was murdered just south of Aqaba on October 13, 1931. Speculations that Italian intelligence ordered the murder of Knud Holmboe have never been verified.