Salman Rushdie, the infamous writer of the controversial novel ‘The Satanic Verses’ was stabbed on Friday at a literary event in New York, USA. The author is currently on a ventilator and is at risk of losing an eye with serious liver damage.
Highlights
- Salman Rushdie was stabbed in New York at a literary event on Friday, 12th August 2022.
- The author has been controversial since he published his fourth novel, “The Satanic Verses.”
- Rushdie, seriously injured, is now on a ventilator with the risk of losing his eye and fatal liver damage.
- The Police have identified the attacker, Hadi Matar, 24 from New Jersey, as reported.
- The motive remains unclear but the news is pulling out different opinions from all around the world.
The Attack on Salman Rushdie
Salman Rushdie was in New York, the USA to attend a literary event organized by the Chautauqua University when he was attacked on stage.
The author came on stage and was about to give his speech when the attacker leaped on him to stab. The attacker, aiming for murder, continuously stabbed the author 15 times, making him badly injured in the abdomen area. The author suffered deadly jabs to the nerves of his arm and liver and is now at risk of losing an eye, as informed by his agent.
“The news is not good. Salman will likely lose one eye; the nerves in his arm were severed, and his liver was stabbed and damaged.” said the agent, Andrew Wylie in an email to REuters
A crowd of 2500 filled the event when Rushdie was attacked on stage. The viral videos and images show people rushing to the stage to immediately confiscate the attacker and help Rushdie. The troops present around then arrested the suspect. The interviewer, Henry Reese, was also hurt in the head during the attack.
A doctor in the audience provided Rushdie his first aid until he was airlifted to the hospital where he spent hours in surgery.
The Chautauqua Institution recalled the brutality of the incident in their statement saying “What many of us witnessed today was a violent expression of hate that shook us to our core.”
The Attacker and Threats
Since it was an on-stage attack the people in the audience quickly confiscated and arrested the attacker.The Police identified the suspect as 24-year-old, Hadi Matar, from New Jersey.
As the investigations are going on no such solid information has come out yet that states the motive of the attacker. “The motive behind the attack remains unclear,” officials reported saying that it is an “early stage” of investigation to reveal anything. They believe that Matar was acting alone.
However, a little research showed Matar being sympathetic to “Shia extremism” and had ties somewhere related to Iran’s anti-Rushdie formula.
Salman Rushdie: The Author
Salman Rushdie is an Indian-born British author born in 1947. Rushdie was a novelist and a short story writer famous for his satirical political takes. Grimus (1975) was his first novel.
The 75-year-old author emerged as a famous writer after his second novel “Midnight’s Children”(1981). The book won him the Booker Prize in 1981 and was deemed to be “the best novel of all winners” on two occasions. Shame (1983) became Rushdie’s third novel.
Rushdie was forced into hiding in 1989 after his 4th book ‘The Satanic Verses’ (1988) created controversy. The book stores were bombed and his translators were getting actively attacked.
Iran’s late leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini issued a fatwa in 1989 calling for his death with a reward of over $3 million. The book was considered blasphemous in how it showed Prophet Muhammad. The book was immediately banned in several countries, including India.
The author has been living a life of hiding under police protection because of threats he received. Yet, after all the controversy some attacker still managed to injure the author too badly.
