Salman Rushdie, the author whose writing led to death threats from Iran in the 1980s, was attacked Friday as he was about to give a lecture in western New York.
An Associated Press reporter witnessed a man storm the stage at the Chautauqua Institution and begin punching or stabbing Rushdie as he was being introduced. The 75-year-old author was pushed or fell to the floor, and the man was restrained.
Rushdie's book “The Satanic Verses” has been banned in Iran since 1988, as many Muslims consider it to be blasphemous. A year later, Iran's late leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini issued a fatwa, or edict, calling for Rushdie's death.Iran's government has long since distanced itself from Khomeini's decree, but anti-Rushdie sentiment has lingered. In 2012, a semi-official Iranian religious foundation raised the bounty for Rushdie from $2.8 million to $3.3 million.
That year, Rushdie published a memoir, “Joseph Anton,” about the fatwa. The title came from the pseudonym Rushdie had used while in hiding.
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Author Salman Rushdie attacked on lecture stage in New YorkSalman Rushdie, the author whose writing led to death threats from Iran in the 1980s, was attacked Friday as he was about to give a lecture in western New York.
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Author Salman Rushdie attacked on lecture stage in New YorkSalman Rushdie, the author whose writing led to death threats from Iran in the 1980s, was attacked Friday in western New York.
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Author Salman Rushdie attacked on lecture stage in New YorkSalman Rushdie, the author whose writing led to death threats from Iran in the 1980s, was attacked Friday as he was about to give a lecture in western New York.
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Author Salman Rushdie attacked on lecture stage in New YorkSalman Rushdie, the author whose writing led to death threats from Iran in the 1980s, was attacked Friday in western New York.
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