Hadi Matar, the man who brutally stabbed author Salman Rushdie during a public lecture in 2022, has been sentenced to 25 years in prison for attempted murder, following a high-profile trial that drew international attention.
The 27-year-old New Jersey resident was convicted in February of attempted murder and assault after launching a knife attack on Rushdie at the Chautauqua Institution in western New York. The assault left the celebrated British-American novelist blind in one eye and with severe injuries to his head and torso.
During Friday’s sentencing hearing, Matar appeared in court wearing a jail uniform and handcuffs. He offered a defiant statement, claiming his actions were a response to what he described as Rushdie’s “hypocrisy” on freedom of speech. “He wants to bully other people,” Matar said.
Judge David Foley imposed the maximum sentence of 25 years for the attempted murder charge and an additional seven years for injuring another man during the attack. The sentences will run concurrently, as both victims were harmed in the same incident.
Rushdie, now 77, did not attend the sentencing but submitted a written victim impact statement. He had previously testified during the trial, vividly recounting the terrifying moment when Matar stabbed him repeatedly on stage just as he was about to speak about the importance of protecting writers.
“I thought I was dying,” Rushdie told the court.
Prosecutor Jason Schmidt argued that Matar had meticulously planned the assault to “inflict the most amount of damage,” while defense attorney Nathaniel Barone asked for a lighter, 12-year sentence, citing Matar’s previously clean criminal record and arguing that broader societal outrage should not factor into sentencing.
Rushdie’s memoir Knife, released earlier this year, offers a firsthand account of the attack and his painful recovery, which included weeks in the hospital and intensive rehabilitation.
Matar, a U.S. citizen, now faces a separate federal trial on terrorism-related charges. Federal prosecutors allege he was inspired by a decades-old fatwa issued by Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khomeini in response to Rushdie’s 1988 novel The Satanic Verses, which sparked international controversy and death threats. Although Iran has since distanced itself from enforcing the fatwa, Matar is believed to have viewed it as still valid and reportedly drew ideological support from Hezbollah.
He has pleaded not guilty to charges of providing material support to terrorists and committing international terrorism, and his federal case is expected to delve further into his motivations.
