Stabbing of Salman Rushdie

Stabbing of Salman Rushdie
Part of Islamic extremism in the United States
Amphitheater stage where the attack occurred, as seen on July 20, 2022
Map
LocationChautauqua Amphitheater[1] Chautauqua Institution, Chautauqua, New York, U.S.
Coordinates42°12′30″N 79°27′51″W / 42.2084°N 79.4643°W / 42.2084; -79.4643
DateAugust 12, 2022; 2 years ago (2022-08-12)
c. 10:47 am[2] (EDT)
TargetSalman Rushdie
Attack type
Stabbing
Deaths0
Injured2
  • (Salman Rushdie and Henry Reese)
Arrests1
MotiveShia Islamic extremism[3] (possible attempted realization of fatwa against Rushdie)
AccusedHadi Matar
Charges

On August 12, 2022, novelist Salman Rushdie was stabbed multiple times as he was about to give a public lecture at the Chautauqua Institution in Chautauqua, New York, United States.[4][5][6] A 24-year-old suspect, Hadi Matar, was arrested directly and charged the following day with assault and attempted murder. Rushdie was gravely wounded and hospitalized. Interviewer Henry Reese was also injured by the attacker.

Rushdie, an Indian-born British-American, has been threatened with death since 1989, a year after the publication of his novel The Satanic Verses, when the Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini issued a fatwa calling for his assassination and set a bounty of $3 million for his death. For years, Rushdie had lived in hiding, taking strict security measures that gradually became more relaxed over time.

The government of Iran denied having foreknowledge of the stabbing, although state-controlled agencies of the Iranian media celebrated it. U.S. law enforcement is investigating whether the assailant was in contact with other extremists.

Rushdie's memoir about the attack, Knife: Meditations After an Attempted Murder, was released on April 16, 2024.

  1. ^ Sommer, Mark; Becker, Maki. "Suspect identified after author Salman Rushdie stabbed in neck at Chautauqua Institution". The Buffalo News. Archived from the original on August 13, 2022. Retrieved August 12, 2022.
  2. ^ Gelles, David; Root, Jay; Harris, Elizabeth (August 12, 2022). "Live Updates: Salman Rushdie Is Stabbed During Speech in Western New York". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on August 12, 2022. Retrieved August 12, 2022.
  3. ^ The New Arab Staff & Agencies (August 13, 2022). "Salman Rushdie attacker 'sympathetic to Shia extremism'". The New Arab. Archived from the original on August 15, 2022. Retrieved August 14, 2022.
  4. ^ Goodman, Joshua (August 12, 2022). "Author Salman Rushdie attacked on lecture stage in New York". Associated Press. Archived from the original on August 12, 2022. Retrieved August 12, 2022.
  5. ^ Staniszewski, Eugene J. (August 12, 2022). "State Police are investigating an attack on author Salman Rushdie". New York State Police Newsroom. Archived from the original on August 12, 2022. Retrieved August 12, 2022.
  6. ^ "Salman Rushdie & Henry Reese". Chautauqua Institution. Archived from the original on August 12, 2022. Retrieved August 13, 2022.