MAYVILLE, N.Y. – In a dramatic incident in 2022, Salman Rushdie was attacked while preparing to deliver a lecture before a live audience in western New York. A man rushed the stage and stabbed the renowned author in the hand as he attempted to defend himself.
Rushdie later described the harrowing experience in a memoir, stating, “After that there are many blows, to my neck, to my chest, to my eye, everywhere. I feel my legs give way, and I fall.”
In the coming weeks, Rushdie will return to the same New York county to serve as one of the first witnesses in the trial of the accused assailant, Hadi Matar. Jury selection is set to commence Tuesday. Matar, 27, from Fairview, New Jersey, has pleaded not guilty to charges of attempted murder and assault.
Rushdie’s memoir, which recounts his attack and subsequent recovery, could provide significant details related to the Aug. 12, 2022 incident that resulted in the 77-year-old losing sight in his right eye and sustaining permanent injury to his hand.
Chautauqua County District Attorney Jason Schmidt emphasized the nature of the event, stating, “This isn’t a back alley event that occurs unwitnessed in a dark alley. This is something that was recorded, it was witnessed live by thousands of people.”
The trial will incorporate video evidence of the attack, along with photographs and documentation. An estimated 15 witnesses are expected to testify over several weeks.
Matar’s defense attorney, Nathaniel Barone, has not publicly outlined a strategy but has defended Matar’s choice to forgo a plea deal, insisting, “It’s about due process… If someone wants to exercise those rights, they’re entitled to do that.”
Federal authorities have also indicted Matar, claiming he was motivated by support from a terrorist organization that endorsed a fatwa calling for Rushdie’s death. This separate trial concerning federal charges of terrorism will take place in U.S. District Court in Buffalo.
Rushdie has been living under the shadow of the 1989 fatwa issued by the late Iranian leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini after the publication of his novel “The Satanic Verses,” which many Muslims consider blasphemous. Matar allegedly believed the fatwa had links to the Lebanon-based militant group Hezbollah.
Chautauqua County District Attorney Schmidt does not plan to introduce evidence related to the fatwa, asserting the focus will remain on the attack itself. “From my standpoint, this is a localized event. It’s a stabbing event. It’s fairly straightforward,” he stated.
Barone has called for careful jury selection to mitigate any potential bias against individuals of Middle Eastern descent, given the discussions surrounding the fatwa.
Matar, who was born in the U.S. but holds dual citizenship in Lebanon, has been held without bail since his arrest. The attack also left the event’s moderator, Henry Reese, co-founder of a local arts organization, injured.
