Salman Rushdie’s new book about stabbing that almost killed him could DELAY trial of his ‘attacker’, which is set to begin next week

The Islamist accused of stabbing Salman Rushdie has been given hours to decide whether to delay his trial by demanding a copy of the author's forthcoming book about the attack that nearly killed him.

Hadi Matar was grabbed from the stage at a book fair in upstate New York after the Satanic Verses author was stabbed repeatedly in August 2022.

Matar, 26, was due to stand trial early this month for the attack that left Rushdie on a ventilator and cost him an eye. Jury selection began on January 8.

But Chautauqua County Judge David Foley ruled that Matar was entitled to a copy of the memoir “Knife: Meditation After an Attempted Murder,” even though it won't be released until April 16.

“It's not just the book,” said attorney Nathaniel Barone, “every little note that Rushdie wrote, I understand that I'm entitled to.

“Every discussion, every recording, everything he did related to this book.”

Rushdie has described the 256-page memoir as “a way of taking charge of what happened, and of responding to violence with art.”

The 76-year-old writer was flown to the hospital after the attack on the Chautauqua Institute with fifteen wounds to his chest and torso and three wounds to his neck.

He suffered a damaged liver, severed nerves in his arm and the loss of his right eye after his attacker stormed the stage.

'Knife' is a searing book and a reminder of the power of words to give meaning to the unthinkable,” said its publisher Nihar Malaviya.

“We are honored to publish it and amazed by Salman's determination to tell his story and return to the work he loves.”

Matar, born in California to Lebanese parents, was dragged off stage by stewards and has since been held without bail in the Chautauqua County Jail.

The author lived in isolation with 24-hour security, or years after his 1988 novel The Satanic Verses prompted Iran's theocratic regime to place a 'fatwa' contract on his life.

Matar was found with a fake driver's license in the names of two Hezbollah commanders when it was seized at the Chautauqua Institute after the attack on Rushdie.

His mother Silvana Fardos told Dailymail.com that her son turned from a popular, loving son to a moody religious fanatic after visiting her ex-husband in the Hezbollah-controlled Lebanese town of Yaroun, a mile from the Israeli border.

“I expected him to come back motivated, finish school, get his degree and get a job,” she said.

“But instead he locked himself in the basement. He had changed a lot, he didn't say anything to me or his sisters for months.'

Matar denied acting on orders when he was arrested for the near-fatal attack on 76-year-old Rusdhie, who lost an eye and the use of a hand.

'I don't like the person. I don't think he's a very good person,” he told interviewers.

“He is someone who has attacked Islam, he has attacked their beliefs, the belief systems.”

District Attorney Jason Schmidt said Rushdie's representatives denied the prosecutor's request for a copy of the manuscript, citing intellectual property rights.

But he played down the book's relevance at the upcoming trial, as the attack was witnessed by a large, live audience and Rushdie himself was able to testify.

Judge Foley gave Matar and his attorney until a pretrial conference at 9:30 a.m. Wednesday to decide whether to postpone the trial until they get their hands on the book, either in advance from the publisher or once it is published.

Barone said after court that he was in favor of a postponement, but would consult with Matar.

Rushdie told The New Yorker that he had worked hard to avoid “recriminations and bitterness” and was determined to “look forward and not back” in his first interview after the attack.

'This doesn't feel like a third person to me. I think if someone sticks a knife in you, that's a first person story. That's a 'me' story,” he said.

Tehran denied any role in the attack on Rushdie, but added: “We do not consider anyone deserving of reproaches, accusations or even condemnations, except [Rushdie] himself and his supporters.'

The author, who was made a Companion of Honor by the king in May last year, has blamed Matar solely for the attack on him and told the BBC he is not sure he can “be bothered” to represent him to meet the court when he comes. before the judge.