Iran denied – this morning, Monday – its connection to the attack on the British writer of Indian origin, Salman Rushdie, last Friday, believing that freedom of expression does not justify his abuse of religion.
“Nobody deserves the blame and blame for the attack on Salman Rushdie in the United States except him and his supporters,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani said at a press conference in Tehran.
He added: “We firmly and officially deny” any connection with the attacker, stressing that no one has the right to accuse Iran, as he said.
Kanaani explained that Rushdie exposed himself to the anger of people, not only Muslims but also followers of other monotheistic religions, insulting Islamic sanctities and crossing the red line of more than 1.5 billion Muslims, as well as the red lines of all followers of monotheism religions, as he said.
Kanaani felt that freedom of expression does not justify Rushdie’s abuse of religion in his writings.
An investigation into motives
A young American of Lebanese descent, Hadi Matar, stabbed Rushdie in different parts of his body, injuring him in the liver and eyes, while standing on a stage in New York in preparation for a conference.
On Saturday, the US judiciary announced the charge of “attempted murder and assault” against Matar, who filed an acquittal before a New York court.
And Vice World News cited European and Middle Eastern intelligence officials who said Matar was in direct contact with members of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards and that the stabbing incident bore all the hallmarks of a “targeted” attack.
The site added that security officials deny that there is evidence of Iran’s involvement in the attack on the country so far.
Previously, NBC New York reported that a preliminary review by investigators of Matar’s reports on the communications sites showed that he had “extremist Shiite leanings” and expressed sympathy for the Iranian Revolutionary Guards, although no links were found. specific to each other.
Rushdie had published his novel “The Satanic Verses” in 1988, which included slurs against Islam, which prompted the then Iranian leader Khomeini to issue a fatwa to kill this novelist and anyone involved in the novel’s publication.
The Iranian government said in 1998 that it no longer supports the fatwa, but Rushdie continued to enjoy personal protection.
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