Oriana Fallaci

Oriana Fallaci (born July 24 1929) is an Italian journalist and author. A former partisan during World War II, she had a long and successful journalistic career.. After retirement, she returned to the spotlight after writing a series of articles and books highly critical of Islam that aroused substantial controversy.

Controversy

In recent years, she has received much public attention for her controversial critique of contemporary Islam. She was highly criticized by Muslim organizations and left-wing parties alike, particularly in France.

Related Topics:
Muslim - Left-wing

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After the September 11, 2001 attacks, she took a strong stance critical of Islam. This point of view was expressed in two books, The Rage and The Pride (initially a four-page article in Corriere della Sera, the major national newspaper in Italy) and The Force of Reason.

Related Topics:
September 11, 2001 attacks - The Rage and The Pride - Corriere della Sera - The Force of Reason

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Another well-known journalist from Florence, Tiziano Terzani, expressed disagreements with her approach in an open letter to her in Corriere della Sera.

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Critics say that Fallaci's books are mere polemics, often egocentric, based on stereotypes, xenophobic and racist in much of their content.

Related Topics:
Polemic - Egocentric - Stereotypes - Xenophobic - Racist

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Fallaci has received much support from nativist parties and movements, such as the Lega Nord in Italy. Her books have sold over 1 million copies in Italy alone.

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Fallaci has previously attracted controversy for expressing anti-abortion views despite her sympathies with anarchism.

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Muslim response to her books

In 2003 the Union of Italian Muslims sued to have The Rage and The Pride banned in France. A French court rejected the request, as well as the group's request for a disclaimer to be placed in each book.

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In May, 2005, Adel Smith, the President of the Union of Italian Muslims, launched a lawsuit against Fallaci charging that "some of the things she said in her book The Force of Reason are offensive to Islam." Smith's attorney, Matteo Nicoli, cited a phrase from the book that refers to Islam as "a pool that never purifies." Consequently an Italian judge ordered her to stand trial in Bergamo on charges of "defaming Islam." A previous prosecutor had sought dismissal of the charges.

Related Topics:
Adel Smith - Bergamo

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In an ironic twist, on June 14, 2005 Adel Smith himself was sentenced by an Italian court in Padua to six months in prison (commuted to a fine of ? 6.000), for the crime of defaming religion. On January 4, 2003, during a live broadcast on Italian TV, Smith had characterized Christianity as a "criminal association" and described Pope John Paul II as "a foreigner who leads the church ... a con man".

Related Topics:
Padua - Fine - Pope John Paul II

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On August 27, 2005, Fallaci had a private audience with Pope Benedict XVI at Castel Gandolfo.

Related Topics:
Pope Benedict XVI - Castel Gandolfo

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