A man, Hadi Matar, has been sentenced to 25 years in prison for the attempted murder of author Salman Rushdie, whom he stabbed multiple times, leaving Rushdie blind in one eye. Prosecutors sought the maximum sentence for the attack that occurred in August 2022, along with an additional term for injuring another individual. During the trial, Rushdie recounted the harrowing experience of being attacked on stage, fearing for his life as he was stabbed more than a dozen times in the head and body. The incident took place at the Chautauqua Institution in New York while Rushdie was being introduced for a discussion on writer safety.
Rushdie sustained severe injuries, including stab wounds to his head, neck, torso, and left hand, as well as damage to his liver and intestines. Following the attack, he underwent a lengthy period of recovery, spending time in both a Pennsylvania hospital and a rehabilitation facility in New York City.
Matar will be facing additional charges related to terrorism, with prosecutors alleging that he was acting on a decades-old fatwa calling for Rushdie’s death. The fatwa was issued by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini of Iran in 1989 in response to Rushdie’s novel “The Satanic Verses,” which was deemed blasphemous by some Muslims, leading Rushdie to live in hiding. Despite the fatwa being lifted in 1998, allowing Rushdie to resume normal travel, Matar has pleaded not guilty to charges related to terrorism activities.
