Rushdie knighthood condemned

Pakistan on Monday condemned Britain’s award of a knighthood to author Salman Rushdie as an affront to Islam, and a Cabinet minister said the honor provided a justification for suicide attacks.

“This is an occasion for the [world’s] 1.5 billion Muslims to look at the seriousness of this decision,” Mohammed Ijaz ul-Haq, religious affairs minister, said in parliament. “The West is accusing Muslims of extremism and terrorism. If someone exploded a bomb on his body, he would be right to do so unless the British government apologizes and withdraws the ‘sir’ title.”

In the eastern city of Multan, Muslim students burned effigies of Queen Elizabeth II and Rushdie. About 100 students carrying banners condemning the author chanted, “Kill him! Kill him!” In 1989, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini issued a fatwa ordering Muslims to kill the author for his portrayal of Islam in the novel “The Satanic Verses.”