South Asia News
Pakistani radicals set 11 million-dollar bounty on Rushdie's head
Jun 23, 2007, 15:23 GMT
Islamabad - A group of Islamic scholars in north-west Pakistan placed an 11.5 million-dollar bounty on author Salman Rushdie's head, whose knighthood in Britain sparked an angry response across the Muslim world recently, a report said Saturday.
The bounty was announced during a meeting of 50 Islamic scholars in the Kanigram region of semi-autonomous North Waziristan, Nawa-i- Waqt newspaper reported Saturday.
'Blasphemer Rushdie is liable to death and anyone who murders him will get a reward of 700 million rupees (about 11.5 dollars),' the head of the meeting, Maulana Muhammad Zaman, was quoted as saying.
'The British government has challenged the honour of one billion and four hundred million Muslims around the world,' he added.
The dispute over the knighthood, proposed by Britain's Labour government and to be awarded by Queen Elizabeth II, escalated Friday as the Pakistani parliament hardened its stance on the issue and demanded an apology from Britain.
'This house renews its demand from the British government and Tony Blair for immediate withdrawal of the title and tender an apology to the Muslim world,' it said in a new resolution.
Thousands of Pakistanis demonstrated across the country chanting slogans 'Death to blasphemer Rushdie' and 'Death to Britain.'
Some speakers urged the government in Islamabad to review its diplomatic and trade relations with London.
Another grouping of Islamic scholars, The Pakistan Ulema Council, on Thursday conferred the honour title of 'Saifullah' or Sword of God on al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden apparently in retaliation for Rushdie's knighting.
Many Muslims consider Rushdie's 1988 book The Satanic Verses blasphemous.
Britain insists that the title was awarded to the scribe for his literary services and not to offend Muslims.
© 2007 dpa - Deutsche Presse-AgenturCOMMENT
blog comments powered by DisqusLatest Headlines in South Asia
- 1. Sri Lanka leftist party says leader, activist are abducted
- 2. US agrees to let Afghan forces take lead in night raids
- 3. India, Pakistan leaders want better ties
- 4. Pilot killed in crash of Bangladesh Air Force jet
- 5. Pakistani president visits India for lunch meeting, prayers
Older Talkback
page: 1
That's Sir Salman Rushdie to you.
Another Muslim world temper tantrum. Cry us a river!
Seems they're never happy unless they're blowing themselves up in crowded public places...
Isn't it a delightful 'religion'?
If those Pakistan clerics can afford $11,000,000 to the killer of Sir Salman Rushdie surely they do not need the £400,000,000 aid that Tony Blair has given them? I think they are 'pulling the wool' over that fools eyes.
Nothing to fear, all mouth and no action, how long have they been 'threatening' to kill him and still not even one attempt on his life?
It`s not a religeon it`s a mental illness.
$11,000,000. Pakistani dollars!!! That's almost enough to buy a cup of coffee at Starbucks.
' A group of Islamic scholars in north-west Pakistan placed an 11.5 million-dollar bounty on author Salman Rushdie's head '
How much for his typing hand..?
These scholars should be given their own tv show on the comedy channel.
nice response from muslims around the world, if the west can honour salman then why cant the east honour bin laden. Hyprocrisy and double standards, and then they compalin when muslims attack when they have the right to defend their land..
Makes one wonder if they have anything better to do, than try to influence
british politics, two fingers up to them all, bloody muslims, talk about hatred, I bloody hate them as much as they hate us westerners, who they call infadels, they must stop smoking there pot, that the problem with them, they are on heavy drugs maaaaaaannnnnnnnn
SIR Salmon Rushdie Jun 23rd, 2007 - 16:35:10 says
'Another Muslim world temper tantrum. Cry us a river!
Seems they're never happy unless they're blowing themselves up in crowded public places...
Isn't it a delightful 'religion'?
StevieJun 23rd, 2007 - 17:24:25 says
'It`s not a religeon it`s a mental illness'.
Both these people are most probably 'yanks' who have no education and a limited vocabulary.
Has anyone actually read any of Salmon Rushdie's books?
He's not a bad author, but if his literary work was that great he would have received more than just the Booker Prize, he would have received multiple awards throughout his career, which he hasn't, because the bottom line is that he's not that great, he's average. He wrote one really good book, and after that the rest were average.
It's obvious that the move to have him knighted was intentional so as to agitate a very significant population of the world. It's an irresponsible move. This patsy Salmon Rushdie doesn't deserve this award by the Queen, not because it pisses people off, but because he hasn't done anything significant in his life to warrant it.
Therefore the most logical conclusion is that it was a move on the part of the British government to intentionally cause more problems and friction in the world.
So to Stevie and his ilk, before making stupid statements and comments, try thinking first before making yourself look like a complete moron
'Lord' Ahmed compares Satanic Verses with 911: That makes him not just unfit for the title, but like many Muslims, unfit to live in the West.
Ahmed must immediately disnoble himself.
P.S. I read S V years ago - Notwithstanding the above, IMHO, Rushdie is boring and incomprehensible.
look in the whitehouse .the room across from bin ladens bedroom
to all you morons out there who
have nothing better to do than
crap about muslims thanx 4 making
them the centre of ur world........
have any of you actually read the books?
someone on the street could right better.
I have read 'Satanic Verses' and found it to be very informative and, regretably, humorous at times. Salman Rushdie definitely has a strong grasp of the english language and is able to wield it's words much like a distinguished swordsman. Good Job and keep it Up!!
Both have enemies who want to silence him.
How's that censorship working so far?
Sir Osam Bin Laden is probably hiding in White house or in Bush ranch in Texas. Well his family was there on 9/11/01, A SPECIAL ARRANGE WAS MADE FOR THEM TO FLY OUT AS THE DAMAGE IN WTC WAS MORE THAN BUSH / USA, COULD TAKE!
EVERY EVIL MUST BE GIVEN THE TITLE OF KNIGHTHOOD IN TH EVIL UK EMPIRE, IT JUST SHOWS THE REALITY OF THE EVIL OF THE WESTERN PAGANISM.
The whole damn thing is comedian's paradise - laughter is great tonics.
Awards that Rushdie has won include the following:
''He's not a bad author, but if his literary work was that great he would have received more than just the Booker Prize, he would have received multiple awards throughout his career, which he hasn't''
Not even these?
James Tait Black Memorial Prize (Fiction)
Arts Council Writers' Award
English-Speaking Union Award
Booker of Bookers or the best novel among the Booker Prize winners for Fiction
Prix du Meilleur Livre Etranger
Whitbread Novel Award (twice)
Writers' Guild of Great Britain Award for Children's Fiction
Kurt Tucholsky Prize (Sweden)
Prix Colette (Switzerland)
State Prize for Literature (Austria)
Author of the Year (British Book Awards)
Author of the Year (Germany)
Mantua Prize (Italy)
Premio Grinzane Cavour (Italy)
Hutch Crossword Fiction Prize (India)
India Abroad Lifetime Achievement Award (USA)
Outstanding Lifetime Achievement in Cultural Humanism (Harvard University)
Aristeion Prize (European Union)
Great fun! The Pakis and their Arab, Kurdish and Iranian brothers, could make millions if they turn all the madrassas into work-out studios! They are so very gooood at making those angel-jumps far up in the air, while waiving their arms, shaking their bearded little faces and making a 1,000 grimaces in a split-second! Jane Fonda couldn't keep up with them....
page: 1
yawnJun 23rd, 2007 - 15:59:22
killing him would be an insult to dead people.
Report this comment