Iran: Rapper faces death threats and fatwa for ‘blasphemous’ song

May 15th, 2012

An Iranian rapper has been issued with fatwas and faced death threats after releasing a controversial song. Shahin Najafi, an Iranian singer based in Germany, released a song containing references to one of the 12 Shia Muslim Imams. The song, which was posted on YouTube, offended some who claim it insults their beliefs, while others claim the song breaks taboos on expressing views about religious personalities. A religious Iranian website has offered a reward of $100,000 (£62,000) for anyone who kills the rapper.

The Satanic Verses at 20

February 13th, 2009

On 14 February 1989, Ayatollah Khomeini of Iran declared a death sentence on novelist Salman Rushdie after the publication of The Satanic Verses. Twenty years on Lisa Appignanesi, recalls how a ground-breaking, visionary novel was hijacked and transformed into an international political cause

Plus: Bernard-Henri Lévy says the fatwa marked a retreat from tolerance
Kenan Malik on why Rushdie’s critics won the war
Peter Mayer on how Penguin faced down the threats
Malise Ruthven describes a political storm
Salil Tripathi says religious offence stifles debate
(more…)

Emblem of darkness

December 3rd, 2008

Ayatollah Khomeini’s fatwa against Salman Rushdie marked a new era: a retreat from the ideal of tolerance and the spirit of the Enlightenment, says Bernard-Henri Lévy in this exclusive article from the new issue of
Index on Censorship
(more…)