A US federal jury has found Hadi Matar, the assailant who stabbed British-American author Salman Rushdie, guilty on all terrorism-related charges. US prosecutors stated that the attack was motivated by Ruhollah Khomeini’s fatwa ordering Rushdie’s assassination, a decree that, according to prosecutors, continued to inspire violence more than three decades after it was issued.
The verdict was returned following a few hours of jury deliberation. Federal prosecutors affirmed that the August 2022 attack on the author was carried out with the intention of executing the fatwa issued by Ruhollah Khomeini, the founder of the Islamic Republic.
Salman Rushdie was attacked in August 2022 while giving a lecture at the Chautauqua Institution in New York State. He suffered 15 stab wounds, was severely injured, and lost vision in his right eye.
John Eisenberg, Assistant Attorney General for National Security, stated following the verdict that the attack on Rushdie during a peaceful cultural event serves as “a reminder of the global reach of Iranian state-sponsored terrorism,” adding that, with this conviction, “justice has been served.” The Islamic Republic has denied any involvement in the attack.
During the trial, federal prosecutors cited messaging app logs demonstrating that Hadi Matar had been discussing the assassination fatwa against Rushdie since 2021, believing that the author of The Satanic Verses had insulted Islam.
