See No Evil, Hear No Evil

It's Hajj week in the Guardian and on BBC, with lots of interesting items about this ancient religious festival.

They both cover the speech of the Grand Mosque's imam, who said that scholars must preach moderation to confront militants, who were using "misguided and void" interpretations to justify violence.

All cheerful stuff. Strangely they don't report another sermon to pilgrims yesterday, by the ruler of Iran.

British officials anxiously played down comments after Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, told Muslims making the annual pilgrimage to Mecca that (Brit author Salman) Rushdie was an apostate whose killing would be authorised by Islam, according to the Iranian media.

His words came during a lengthy tirade against “Western and Zionist capitalists” and the US-led War on Terror.

I remember when Rushdie was a favourite Guardian person, the Zadie Smith of his day, when he attacked Brit racism and every well-read liberal's bookshelf had its copy of 'Midnight's Children'. Now they wouldn't micturate on him were he on fire - as long as the faithful were burning him.

If only Combat 18 (semi-mythical Nazi monster. Believed, like the Griffon and Wyvern, to be extinct) were threatening him. He'd be all over their front page like a rash.