A man, Hadi Matar, has been found guilty by a jury of federal terrorism charges related to the 2022 stabbing incident involving author Salman Rushdie. Matar, aged 28, is currently serving a 25-year sentence in a New York state prison for attempted murder in an attack on an amphitheatre stage in August 2022.
The jury convicted Matar on all charges, including engaging in transnational terrorism. The federal conviction carries a potential life sentence. Rushdie, known for his book “The Satanic Verses,” has been under a long-standing death threat. In August 2022, while preparing to discuss writers’ safety, Rushdie was brutally attacked in front of an audience, sustaining 15 stab wounds and losing vision in one eye.
In 2025, Rushdie recounted the harrowing experience of being repeatedly stabbed on stage by a masked assailant. He described mistaking the attacker’s intentions initially, thinking it was a punch. Rushdie noted the attacker’s dark, fierce eyes and realized the presence of a knife only upon seeing blood on his clothes. The author vividly recalled lying in a pool of blood, feeling immense pain and shock, and fearing for his life.
Rushdie’s testimony highlighted the severity of the attack and the profound impact it had on him. The incident underscores the ongoing threats faced by individuals in the public eye and the broader implications of such acts of violence.