Blasphemous Rushdie Knifed in New York

Rushdie had been called by the Chautauqua Institution in New York to pay tribute to the American Asylum to the writers who fleed their native countries due to life threats.

An Iranian descent, resident of New Jersey, 24 years old Hadi Matar approached Rushdie on the stage and stabbed him in the neck and in the abdomen. Matar was then restrained by the spectators and the police were called.

An eyewitness account says that after the incident, Hadi Matar remained on the scene until a group of spectators cautiously advanced to tackle him, Matar did not resist his arrest. It is told that Matar bought a ticket to attend the gathering of exiled impugners, most likely to target Rushdie in particular.

Rushdie was taken to the nearest medical aid center in a helicopter where he went under life-saving surgery. Rushdie might lose an eye and his voice said his agent after consulting with the doctors, but he will live.

Matar was taken into custody by the local police and was presented before the area judge where Matar was refused bail and remanded back to the police for probing the possibility of his connection with other attackers.

After the fatwa in 1989, Rushdie went underground and surfaced only under police protection, however, his protection was recalled a few years ago due to undisclosed reasons.

In 1926, Rajpal was stabbed by Ilm Din after he published derogatory material. Rajpal succumbed to the injuries and Ilm Din was hanged. For people in Pakistan, Hadi Matar is Ilm Din of the modern era.