The Indian-born British novelist remains in hospital with serious injuries, but fellow author Aatish Taseer tweeted on Saturday night that he was “off the ventilator and talking (and joking)”. Rushdie’s agent, Andrew Wylie, confirmed this information without giving further details. Earlier Saturday, Hadi Mattar, the suspect in Friday’s attack on a literary festival in upstate New York, pleaded not guilty to charges of attempted murder and assault in a brief court appearance where he was denied bail. Joe Biden, the US president, praised Rushdie for his “refusal to be intimidated or silenced” and said the author stood for the core ideals of truth, courage and resilience. “These are the building blocks of any free and open society. And today, we reaffirm our commitment to these deeply American values in solidarity with Rushdie and all those who stand up for freedom of expression,” the president said in a statement. Biden also said he was “shocked and saddened to learn of the vicious attack.” European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell “strongly” condemned the attack on Saturday night. “International rejection of such criminal actions, which violate fundamental rights and freedoms, is the only way to a better and more peaceful world,” Borrell wrote on Twitter. Rushdie lived in hiding and under police protection for years after the late Iranian leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini issued a fatwa in 1989 calling for his death in retaliation for Rushdie’s book The Satanic Verses. Many Muslims interpreted the author’s book as blasphemous because it included a character they found offensive to the prophet Muhammad. Rushdie, 75, was at the Chautauqua Foundation to speak about the importance of America giving asylum to exiled writers when he was attacked, and said recently that he believed his life was “pretty normal again.” On Saturday, prosecutor Jason Schmidt claimed Rushdie’s alleged assailant took steps to put himself in a position to harm Rushdie by getting advance permission for the event where the writer was speaking and arriving a day early with fake ID. “This was a targeted, unprovoked, premeditated attack on Mr. Rushdie,” Schmidt argued. Public defender Nathaniel Barone complained that authorities took too long to bring Matar before a judge, leaving him “glued to a bench in the state police barracks.” “He has that constitutional right of presumption of innocence,” Barone said. Matar allegedly rushed the stage and repeatedly stabbed Rushdie before being tackled by spectators, institution staff and two local police officers providing security. Rushdie suffered liver damage and severed nerves in an arm and eye, Whaley said Friday night. He was likely to lose the injured eye. The attack was met with shock and outrage from much of the world, along with tributes and praise for the award-winning author who for more than 30 years faced death threats over The Satanic Verses. Writers, activists, and government officials have cited Rushdie’s courage and longstanding defense of free speech despite risks to his own safety. Writer and long-time friend Ian McEwan called Rushdie “an inspirational champion of persecuted writers and journalists around the world” and actor-writer Kal Penn cited him as a role model “for a whole generation of artists, especially many of us in South Asia . of the diaspora towards which he showed incredible warmth”. The motive for the attack appears to be unclear. The suspect was born a decade after The Satanic Verses was published. Barone, the public defender, said after Saturday’s hearing that Matar, of Fairview, New Jersey, had been communicating openly with him and that he would spend the next few weeks trying to learn about his client, including whether he has psychological problems or addiction problems. Matar was born in the United States to parents who immigrated from Yaroun in southern Lebanon, the village’s mayor, Ali Tehfe, told The Associated Press. Flags of the Iranian-backed Shiite group Hezbollah are visible throughout the village, along with portraits of leader Hassan Nasrallah, Khamenei, Khomeini and slain Iranian general Qassem Soleimani. Journalists who visited Yaroun on Saturday were told to leave. Hezbollah spokesmen did not respond to requests for comment. Iran’s theocratic government and state media reported no motive for the attack. In Tehran, some Iranians praised the attack on a writer they believe tarnished the Islamic faith, while others worried it would further isolate their country.
