Iran has categorically denied any link with Salman Rushdie’s attacker. Mr. Rushdie, 75, was left severely injured after being stabbed on stage at an event in New York state. He is now able to breathe unaided. He has faced years of death threats for his 1988 novel The Satanic Verses. Earlier, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken accused Iran’s state media of gloating about the attack, calling its behaviour “despicable”.
As news emerged of Friday’s attack, eyes turned to Tehran where the fatwa – religious edict – calling for the writer’s assassination was first issued more than three decades ago. But on Monday, Iran’s foreign ministry spokesperson Nasser Kanaani – giving the country’s first official reaction – said Tehran categorically denied any link, adding no one has the right to accuse the Islamic Republic of Iran. However, he said freedom of speech did not justify Mr. Rushdie insulting religion in his writing.