Iranian president and Salman Rushdie

Iranian President Muhammad Khatami has expressed strong regret over the awarding of British writer Salman Rushdie who wrote "The Satanic Verses" of a prize from the University of Torino, Italy on Wednesday.

In a statement to the Italian daily "Republica" issued on Thursday, Khatami said that Rushdie had insulted the feelings and the religious beliefs of more than one billion Muslims.

The Iranian president made it clear that the "Fatwa" released by al-Imam al-Khumeini against Rushdie ten years ago was approved by all Islamic countries, noting that the Iranian government will do nothing to carry out the said Fatwa.