A man has been convicted of attempted murder for assaulting author Sir Salman Rushdie. The 77-year-old British-American writer was stabbed multiple times while preparing to deliver a speech in New York in 2022. As a result of the attack, he lost vision in his right eye, sustained severe injuries to his hand, and underwent a lengthy recovery process. After a trial in Chautauqua County Court, a jury found 27-year-old Hadi Matar guilty of attempting to murder Sir Salman, reaching their decision in under two hours. Matar was also convicted of assault for injuring Henry Reese, who was on stage with Sir Salman during the incident. Matar showed no visible reaction to the verdict and quietly stated “free Palestine” as he was escorted out of the courtroom in handcuffs.
The court heard that Matar rushed onto the stage at the Chautauqua Institution on August 12, 2022, and stabbed the author in front of an audience. Sir Salman, who spent much of the 1990s in hiding due to death threats related to his 1988 novel “The Satanic Verses,” was stabbed approximately 15 times, suffering injuries to his head, neck, torso, and left hand, as well as damage to his liver and intestines.
During the trial, Sir Salman recounted the moment of the attack, stating, “I only saw him at the last minute.” He described seeing someone in dark clothing and a black mask, noting the ferocity in the assailant’s eyes. Initially thinking he was being punched, he soon realized he was bleeding profusely. He expressed feelings of “great pain and shock,” and his predominant thought was that he was dying.
The court also heard that Henry Reese, co-founder of Pittsburgh’s City of Asylum, sustained a gash to his forehead during the attack. In closing arguments, District Attorney Jason Schmidt presented a video of the assault, emphasizing its unprovoked and targeted nature, stating, “There were a lot of people around that day, but there was only one person who was targeted.” Matar’s defense argued that the prosecution failed to prove he intended to kill Rushdie, with defense attorney Andrew Brautigan suggesting that while something terrible happened to Rushdie, Matar’s conscious objective remained unclear. Schmidt acknowledged that while Matar’s thoughts could not be read, the nature of the attack was foreseeable.
