The man accused of stabbing Salman Rushdie has been indicted by a grand jury, according to prosecutors.
Hadi Matar appeared in a court hearing in Chautauqua County in New York on Thursday afternoon, according to the Associated Press. He pleaded not guilty to the attempted murder and assault charges during his appearance, according to AFP.
SYRIA DENIES ALLEGATIONS AUSTIN TICE IS BEING HELD HOSTAGE BY GOVERNMENT
#BREAKING Rushdie stabbing suspect pleads not guilty to attempted murder, assault pic.twitter.com/8b9JohnyKV
— AFP News Agency (@AFP) August 18, 2022
Matar, a 24-year-old from Fairview, New Jersey, was arrested Friday after he allegedly rushed the stage at the Chautauqua Institution, stabbing Rushdie multiple times as the author was preparing to give a lecture.
Rushdie’s accused attacker is being held without bail after he was initially charged with attempted murder and assault, according to police, and had pleaded not guilty.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken condemned the government of Iran, which has celebrated the attack on Rushdie, in a statement given on Sunday, calling Tehran’s reaction “despicable.” He also praised Rushdie’s work and stressed America’s commitment to the right of free speech.
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Rushdie, 75, suffered grave injuries in the attack, his agent Andrew Wylie said, including a damaged liver, the severing of nerves in his arm, and the possible loss of his eye. Nevertheless, he is now off a ventilator, and “his condition is headed in the right direction,” the agent added on Sunday.
Rushdie drew controversy in the late 1980s upon the publication of The Satanic Verses, a book that many Muslims believed to be blasphemous. He received many death threats, particularly after Iran issued a fatwa that asked all Muslims to kill him. A bounty as high as $6 million was also placed on his life, according to the Index on Censorship.
