I don't remember this Rushdie/Ysuf Islam business. A couple of questions from reading the Wikipedia entry.

The New York Times reported on May 23, 1989 that Islam was to be on a British television program the following week, and was quoted as saying:

    [If Rushdie turned up at my doorstep looking for help,] I might ring somebody who might do more damage to him than he would like. I'd try to phone the Ayatollah Khomeini and tell him exactly where this man is.

Was this statement (or a similar statement) ever made by YI? It is quite different to explaining what a text says.

Islam's most recent clarification of the issue is stated in a 2003 article on CatStevens.com

I presume this is the article Lizzie has quoted but what of his earlier clarifications - what did they say?

Overall, I suspect the root of it is likely to be bad/trouble making media and perhaps misunderstanding but I don't feel quite as convinced as I'd like.