Salman Rushdie knighted by British queen

Queen Elizabeth II on Wednesday knighted the controversial British author Salman Rushdie, an award which caused protests by Muslims around the world when it was announced last year.

Rushdie was knighted for his services to literature.

When the knighthood was announced in the queen's birthday honors list in June last year, it sparked condemnation from a number of Muslim countries and organizations, and a threat against Britain from al-Qaeda.

The Indian-born writer has spent the last 18 years living under the shadow of an Iranian fatwa calling for his death, which has never been formally revoked, over his controversial novel, "The Satanic Verses".

The author is accused by some Muslims of blaspheming Islam in the novel, which triggered an international furor when it was first published in 1988.