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Satanic Verses author Salman Rushdie lost sight in one eye, using a hand and sustained FIFTEEN wounds to his neck and body in a ‘brutal’ knife attack during a New York lecture
- Salman Rushdie, 75, was stabbed during a New York lecture in August
- His agent Andrew Wylie has revealed the extent of his injuries for the first time
- He declined to say if Mr Rushdie was still in hospital, but confirmed he will be alive
- Said they discussed the possibility of a ‘random’ attack after the fatwa was imposed?
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Author Salman Rushdie has lost sight in one eye and mobility in one hand after being brutally stabbed during a lecture in New York, his agent has revealed.
The 75-year-old — best known for his novel The Satanic Verses which prompted a fatwa calling for his death from Iran’s supreme leader — was stabbed multiple times as he took the stage to deliver a lecture on artistic freedom. at the Chautauqua Institute on August 12.
Mr Rushdie had to undergo emergency surgery after suffering stab wounds to the neck and stomach, stab wounds to his right eye and chest and a laceration to his right thigh.
At the time, it was not clear whether Mr Rushdie would survive the attack, while his accused assailant Hadi Matar, 24, said in a prison interview that he was “amazed” that the author had lived.
And now Officer Andrew Wylie has revealed for the first time how serious Mr Rushdie’s injuries are in an interview with the Spanish newspaper. El Pais.
“His wounds were deep. He lost sight in one eye. He suffered three serious neck injuries and lost mobility in one hand because the nerves were severed from the stab wounds,” said Mr Wylie.
Salman Rushdie (pictured) has lost sight in one eye and mobility in one hand after being brutally stabbed during a lecture in New York, his agent has revealed
And he sustained another 15 injuries to his chest and torso. So it was a brutal attack.’
The officer declined to say if his client was still in the hospital, but added, “Rushdie will survive.”
Mr Wylie said he had discussed the possibility of an assassination attempt with Mr Rushdie in the past.
He said: ‘The greatest danger he faced, so many years after the fatwa was imposed, is that a random person will come out of nowhere and attack him. [him].’
‘So you can’t protect yourself against that, because it’s totally unexpected and illogical. It was just like John Lennon[‘s murder].’
But Mr Rushdie had said in an interview just days before he was stabbed that his life was “back to normal” after years of absconding and death threats.
Mr Rushdie (pictured, he was being cared for after the attack on the Chautauqua Institute in New York) had emergency surgery after he suffered three stab wounds to the neck, four to the stomach, stab wounds to his right eye and chest and a laceration to his chest. right thigh
In an interview with the German magazine Stern in early August, Rushdie said death threats “have become more normal,” but the fatwa no longer scared him.
He said: ‘A fatwa is a serious matter. Luckily we didn’t have internet then. The Iranians had faxed the fatwa to the mosques.
“That was all a long time ago. My life is now very normal again.’
The man charged with stabbing Rushdie pleaded not guilty to attempted murder and second-degree assault when he appeared in court on Aug. 18.
Hadi Matar, 24, appeared in court wearing a gray striped jumpsuit and white COVID-19 mask, as District Attorney Jason Schmidt claimed: ‘His mission to kill Mr Rushdie is bigger in his mind and outweighs his personal freedom.’
Accused attacker Hadi Matar, 24, (pictured in court on Aug. 18) said he was ‘surprised’ the author had survived
Mr Schmidt argued that Matar should be held in custody while a trial into the attack progresses and he was ordered not to have any contact with Mr Rushdie.
He also agreed to a request from his lawyer to issue a temporary gag order, barring the parties from discussing the matter in the media.
In his interview with El País, Mr. Wylie also spoke of the “rise of nationalism” and the banning of Maus — the Pulitzer Prize-winning book by another of its authors, Art Spiegelman — in some American schools.
The graphic novel was banned by a Tennessee school district for “inappropriate language” (eight swear words) and a depiction of a naked woman.
Mr. Wylie said, “You know, that’s the religious right to behave the way they behave. It’s ridiculous. It’s ridiculous. It’s embarrassing. But it is now a great force in the country.”