A US federal jury has convicted Hadi Matar, the man who stabbed author Salman Rushdie in 2022, on terrorism-related charges…reports Asian Lite News Desk
A US federal jury has convicted Hadi Matar, the man who stabbed acclaimed author Salman Rushdie during a public event in New York in 2022, on multiple terrorism-related charges, concluding that the attack was carried out in support of Hezbollah and in an effort to enforce Iran’s decades-old fatwa against the novelist.
The jury found Matar, 28, of Fairview, New Jersey, guilty of attempting to provide material support to Hezbollah, a designated foreign terrorist organisation, engaging in an act of terrorism transcending national boundaries, and providing material support to terrorists.
The verdict followed a trial in which prosecutors argued that Matar had spent more than a year researching the fatwa issued against Rushdie before carefully planning the attack at the Chautauqua Institution in Mayville, New York, on August 12, 2022.
According to evidence presented during the trial, Matar studied the continued validity of the fatwa and discussed it, along with Hezbollah’s endorsement of it, with individuals in Iran, Australia and Canada. Prosecutors said he also produced videos titled “Rushdie_Fatwa 2.0” and “Rushdie_Fatwa 1.6”, combining footage about the fatwa with speeches by Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah supporting it.
Investigators further alleged that Matar surrounded himself with Hezbollah symbolism before the attack. He travelled to the venue using the alias “Hassan Mughniyeh” and carried a fake driving licence bearing that name. Prosecutors said the alias referenced Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah and the late Imad Mughniyeh, the militant group’s former external security chief. On the morning of the attack, Matar also accessed a Hezbollah-run website and took screenshots of members described as Hezbollah martyrs.
Assistant Attorney General for National Security John A. Eisenberg said the evidence demonstrated that Matar had embraced Hezbollah’s ideology and deliberately sought to carry out the fatwa.
“Matar spent more than a year immersing himself in Hizballah’s violent ideology and preparing to act on a fatwa issued by Iran’s Ayatollahs calling for Mr. Rushdie’s murder,” Eisenberg said.
US Attorney Michael DiGiacomo for the Western District of New York said Matar had spent months preparing for what he hoped would be Rushdie’s execution.
“The defendant spent months planning and preparing to carry out what he hoped would be the execution of Salman Rushdie and possibly follow in the footsteps of martyrs he admired. Instead, his attempted act of terror failed, and Salman Rushdie survived, thanks to courageous members of the public and law enforcement, who saved Rushdie and captured Matar,” he said.
Assistant Director Jarod Brown of the FBI’s Counterterrorism Division described the stabbing as a premeditated terrorist act.
“This was not an impulsive act; Matar conducted a violent attack in support of a designated foreign terrorist organization and wanted to carry out a fatwa against the victim,” Brown said.
Rushdie was attacked while preparing to speak at the Chautauqua Institution. The assault left him with life-changing injuries, including the loss of sight in one eye.
Matar faces a maximum sentence of life imprisonment when he is sentenced on November 3 by US District Judge Richard J. Arcara, who presided over the federal trial.
The case was prosecuted by the US Attorney’s Office for the Western District of New York and the National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section, following an investigation led by the FBI’s Buffalo Field Office and the New York State Police, with assistance from other federal and local law enforcement agencies.
