Rushdie’s offensive writing, support by Western countries to blame for stabbing incident: Iran
TEHRAN, Iran (AA) – In its first reaction since the assassination bid on controversial writer Salman Rushdie, Iran said the writer-provocateur and his supporters are to blame for the attack.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani, addressing a weekly press conference in Tehran, refuted any link between the attack on Rushdie and Iran.
He said “no one has the right” to accuse Iran of orchestrating the attack on Rushdie, who is currently recovering at a hospital after being stabbed on stage at an event in New York, which left him with severe injuries.
The 75-year-old author has been living under threat because of an offensive 1988 novel in which he caricaturized the most sacred personalities of Islam. The book triggered a wave of protests in the Muslim world and prompted the Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Khomeini to issue a religious edict against him.
The Foreign Ministry spokesman said they know nothing about the assailant other than what they have “heard in the American media.”
Kanaani maintained that Rushdie invited threats and attacks against himself because he “crossed the red line of 1.5 billion Muslims,” as well as other divine religions, by committing blasphemy against the Holy Prophet Muhammad Peace Be Upon Him who is revered and loved by billions of devoted followers.
“Freedom of expression cannot justify abusing divine religions and their principles,” Kanaani said.
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