Salman Rushdie's Attacker Sentenced to 25 Years

The man who attacked British American novelist Salman Rushdie with a knife has been sentenced to 25 years in prison. The attack was carried out by Hadi Matar in the US in 2022, resulting in Rushdie losing vision in one eye. The court convicted this New Jersey accused of attempted murder in February 2025.

Matar was convicted after a two-week trial in Chautauqua County Court, western New York state. 77-year-old Salman Rushdie testified that he was on the stage of the historic Chautauqua Institution when he saw a man moving rapidly towards him. Recalling the incident, he told that the attacker's eyes were black and extremely cruel. Initially, he thought he had been attacked with a punch, but later he understood that he had been stabbed with a knife.

Before the sentencing in the court, Hadi Matar expressed his views on freedom of expression, in which he called Salman Rushdie a hypocrite. Hadi Matar said that Rushdie wants to insult and threaten others, and he disagrees with this. Hadi Matar was sentenced to 25 years for attempting to murder Rushdie, while another person present on the stage was sentenced to 7 years for injuring him. The court made it clear that both the sentences will run simultaneously, as both the victims were injured in the same incident.

Hadi Matar has claimed his innocence in three charges. He was accused of providing material to terrorists, trying to aid Hezbollah and being involved in terrorism near the border.

Fatwa was issued against Rushdie

The attack took place 35 years after the publication of Salman Rushdie's controversial novel "The Satanic Verses". The novel drew inspiration from the life of Prophet Muhammad, which caused deep outrage among some Muslims as they saw it as blasphemy. After its publication in 1988, the book was banned in many countries. In 1989, Iran's supreme leader Ruhollah Khomeini issued a fatwa ordering Muslims to kill Rushdie.