It is unclear what Rushdie told investigators after the attack, which shocked the literary world and drew immediate condemnation from around the world. The suspect in the attack, identified as 24-year-old Hadi Matar, reportedly jumped on stage at the Chautauqua Foundation, about 70 miles southwest of Buffalo, New York, and lunged at Rushdie, stabbing him repeatedly, according to New York State. Police. The suspect was held down by audience members and staff who forced him to the ground until he was apprehended by a state trooper. The author suffered three stab wounds to his neck, four stab wounds to his stomach, stab wounds to his right eye and chest and one wound to his right thigh, Chautauqua County District Attorney Jason Schmidt said during of Matar’s weekend offering. Rushdie may lose sight in his right eye, he noted, adding that the attack was targeted and premeditated. Officials believe Matar, who lived in Fairview, New Jersey, traveled to Buffalo by bus and used a ride-hailing app to get to Chautauqua the day before the attack, according to a law enforcement official who spoke to CNN . Investigators do not know where Matar spent the night and are working with the foundation to comb through surveillance footage to determine if he was near the area overnight, the official added. After his arrest, Matar had a fake driver’s license, some cash, two prepaid Visa gift cards and no wallet, the official told CNN. Matar refused to answer questions from authorities when he was taken into custody and asked for a lawyer, the law enforcement official said. Public defender Nathaniel Barone, who represents Matar, told CNN his client was “very cooperative” and communicating openly. Matar pleaded not guilty to charges of attempted second-degree murder and second-degree assault with intent to inflict bodily injury with a deadly weapon, Barone said. Rushdie lived in hiding after his novel The Satanic Verses was published in 1988, drawing criticism from some Muslims who saw it as sacrilegious. The late Iranian leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, who described the book as an insult to Islam and the religion’s prophet Muhammad, issued a religious edict, or fatwa, calling for Rushdie’s death in 1989.
What do we know about the suspect?
A motive for the attack remains unclear, and authorities are examining items taken from Matar’s home in New Jersey, according to the law enforcement source. Matar, who has no documented criminal history, is accused of using a knife in the stabbing, according to a felony complaint. It remains unclear how he might have entered the event armed with a knife. There were no security searches or metal detectors at the event, said a witness whom CNN is not identifying because of personal safety concerns. Matar is described as someone who is quiet and mostly keeps to himself, according to people who interacted with him at a boxing gym in North Bergen, New Jersey. Desmond Boyle, the owner of the State of Fitness Boxing Club, told CNN Matar signed up there in April. “You know that look, that ‘it’s the worst day of your life’? He went in every day like that,” Boyle told CNN. Roberto Irizarry, a member of the gym, told CNN that Matar went to the gym about three or four times a week and was “a very quiet kid.” “It’s a brotherly environment, family environment — we try to get everybody involved. He was for himself, pretty much,” Irizarry said. Matar faces up to 32 years in prison if convicted, the prosecutor said.
The US condemns the Iranian government’s statement
The attack on the famous author drew support from writers and officials around the world. UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson said he was “appalled” by the attack on Rushdie, who is also a British citizen. “I am appalled that Sir Salman Rushdie was stabbed while exercising a right that we must never stop defending. My thoughts are with his loved ones at this time.” Rushdie began living under British protection after Iran issued a fatwa calling for his death. On Monday, the Iranian government denied links to the attack in its first official reaction. “We do not consider anyone other than Rushdie and his supporters worthy of blame and even condemnation,” Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani said during a televised news conference. Iranian officials did not learn anything about the suspect other than what the US media reported, Kanaani said, according to Iranian state media. “We categorically and seriously deny any connection of the perpetrator with Iran,” Kanaani added. The US State Department denounced Iran’s stance, saying the comments were “despicable” and “disgusting”. “It’s no secret that the Iranian regime has been central to threats against his life for years,” said State Department spokesman Ned Price, who called Iran’s “turn of ignorance” about the attack “absolutely outrageous.” “We want to be very clear that this is not something we can tolerate,” Price said. In 1998, the Iranian government attempted to distance itself from the fatwa, pledging not to seek to implement it. Nevertheless, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei reaffirmed the religious decree. In February 2017, on Khamenei’s official website, the Supreme Leader was asked if “the fatwa against Rushdi was still valid”, to which Khamenei confirmed that it was, saying: “The decree is as issued by Imam Khomeini.” Nicki Brown, Liam Reilly, Artemis Moshtaghian, Kristina Sgueglia, Samantha Beech, Lauren Said-Moorhouse, David Romain, Nouran Salahieh, Adam Pourahmadi, Alex Stambaugh, Michael Conte and Christian Sierra contributed to this CNN report.
