Khomeini Issued a Fatwa Condemning Salman Rushdie in 1989
The Claim
Iran issued a fatwa condemning Salman Rushdie in 1988.
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Emerging story
Many social media users have recently circulated claims purporting that Iran issued a fatwa condemning Salman Rushdie in 1988.
Misbar’s Analysis
Misbar investigated the circulating claim and found it to be misleading. Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini issued a fatwa condemning Salman Rushdie to death on February 14, 1989.
“The Satanic Verses”
Salman Rushdie’s novel “The Satanic Verses” was first published in September 1988. A few months after its publication, Iran’s supreme leader, at the time Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, criticized the novel for “blasphemy” and placed a $2.8 million bounty on the writer’s head.
2022 Attack on Salman Rushdie
On Friday August 12, Salman Rushdie was stabbed at a literary event in New York. The writer faced some serious health issues following the attack but is currently on the mend. According to CNN, the writer is “awake and ‘articulate’ in his conversations with investigators as he remains hospitalized for severe injuries.”
The Man Accused of Stabbing Salman Rushdie
A 24-year-old called Hadi Matar has been detained and charged with attempted murder following the attack on Salman Rushdie.
In an interview with The New York Post, the attacker admitted that he had only read a couple of pages from “The Satanic Verses.” Matar also expressed his admiration of Khomeini and his feelings about Sir Rushdie: “He’s someone who attacked Islam, he attacked their beliefs, the belief systems,” said Matar.
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