Salman Rushdie Likely To Lose An Eye After NY Stabbing, Author Helping Investigators With Inquiries

Author Salman Rushdie is conscious and “articulate” after sustaining grave injuries from a stabbing attack in western New York on Friday. Law enforcement reports said Rushdie remains hospitalized while investigators have started questioning him about the details of the attack.

According to CNN, the award-winning 75-year-old author was already conscious on Monday and able to converse and reply to questions. After undergoing extensive emergency surgery from sustaining multiple stab wounds in the gruesome attack, Rushdie may yet stand to lose an eye. He is recovering in intensive care as he endures stabbing injuries to his right eye and chest, 4 puncture wounds to his abdomen and lacerations on his right thigh.

Meanwhile, the author’s assailant, 24-year-old Hadi Matar, reportedly has no previous criminal history, the New York State Police said. However, he is faced with a prison sentence of 32 years if convicted of attempted murder. In an interview with the Daily Mail, Matar’s mother, Silvana Fardos said that her son was born and raised in the U.S., and was the “outgoing” type. She says Matar took a month-long trip to the Middle East back in 2018 and returned a changed man, becoming more of a “moody introvert”. She also added that she didn’t find out about the attack until the FBI stormed her home in Fairview, New Jersey.

Officials believe Matar traveled by bus from Fairview to Buffalo, then used ridesharing to reach Chautauqua the night before the stabbing. It is unknown where Matar spent the night. Police are working together with the institution, sifting through surveillance footage, to see if Matar spent the night near the area. Matar jumped onto the stage at the Chautauqua Institution, then charged at Rushdie, brutally stabbing the novelist repeatedly. The suspect was subdued to the ground by staff and audience members before being arrested by a state trooper. Matar has pleaded not guilty to his charges.

It is still unknown what Rushdie told investigators following the stabbing. He was forced to go into hiding and lived under 24/7 security from bodyguards for over a decade in the face of threats to his life. A religious decree or fatwa to kill him was ordered by Iran’s Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini in 1989, for publishing his book, “The Satanic Verses.”

Since the attack, Iran has denied any involvement in Rushdie’s stabbing but had also put the blame on the author and his supporters for writing Muslim offensive content in his book. Salman Rushdie is a renowned author whose books have received multiple awards. Some of his works include “The Satanic Verse, ” “Midnight’s Children,” and “Shame.”