Cat Stevens to be honored

The singer once known as Cat Stevens will receive a peace prize from a foundation headed by former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev.

Yusuf Islam was expected to attend a ceremony in Rome today to receive the Man for Peace award from Gorbachev and Mayor Walter Veltroni, said Enzo Cursio, a spokesman for the Gorbachev Foundation.

Islam will receive the award “for his dedication to promote peace, the reconciliation of people and to condemn terrorism.”

In September, the British musician was expelled from the United States after authorities diverted his London-to-Washington flight to Maine to remove him, saying he was suspected of ties to terrorism. He said that he was a victim of an “unjust and arbitrary system” and that he has denounced terrorism.