An Iranian foundation increased a bounty for the death of Salman Rushdie, saying that if he had previously been killed for blasphemy, the anti-Islam film would never have been made.

An Iranian foundation has reportedly increased a bounty for the death of Salman Rushdie, saying that if the British writer had previously been killed for blasphemy, the offensive film film against Islam currently enraging Muslims would never have been made.

Iranian media quoted Hassan Sane'i, a cleric heading the 15 of Khordad Foundation, as saying in a statement that he was "adding another USD 500,000 to the reward for killing Rushdie."

With the increase, the foundation was now offering USD 3.3 million for the death of Rushdie, who since 1989 has been the target of an Iranian fatwa calling for his murder for insulting Islam in his book "The Satanic Verses."

Indian-born Rushdie, 65, spent a decade in hiding after Iran's spiritual leader, the late Grand Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, issued the 1989 fatwa against him for his book.