Prosecutors on Wednesday opened a federal trial for Hadi Matar, who is accused of attempting to kill author Salman Rushdie in a 2022 stabbing, framing the assault as an act of terrorism. Matar, 28, has pleaded not guilty to charges including engaging in an act of transnational terrorism.
During opening statements in Buffalo, New York, Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy Lynch told jurors that Matar’s intent was to "fulfill the fatwa," a religious ruling calling for Rushdie’s death over his 1988 novel, "The Satanic Verses." Rushdie, a celebrated author and free-speech advocate, is expected to testify later this week about the attack that nearly killed him and left him with a permanently impaired eye.
Matar is currently serving a 25-year sentence in New York State prison for attempted murder and assault stemming from the incident. He appeared in court in dress pants and a shirt that seemed too large, taking notes and shifting in his chair during the proceedings.
The federal trial shifts the focus from the mechanics of the stabbing, which was the emphasis of Matar’s state trial, to the alleged motivation behind it. If convicted of the federal charges, Matar faces a potential life sentence.
Prosecutors contend that Matar acted in loyalty to Iran's theocratic government and the Hezbollah militant group, which the U.S. designates as a terrorist organization. Evidence presented by prosecutors includes Matar’s electronics, which contained information about the fatwa, and a journal and sticky notes detailing his research into Rushdie and potential methods for killing him. Federal agents also found photos of Iranian leaders in his New Jersey bedroom.
Defense attorney Nathaniel Barone urged the jury to remain open-minded, emphasizing that the case hinges on Matar's intent. "You’re going to have to ask yourselves: What was Hadi Matar’s intent?" Barone said in his opening statement.
Rushdie, 79, was repeatedly stabbed in front of an audience at the Chautauqua Institution as he prepared to discuss writer safety. He has spoken about the assault and his subsequent recovery in interviews and a memoir, describing the experience as a close encounter with death. "The thing that happens when you get really a close-up look at death — that’s as close as you can get without actually doing the dance of death and heading off to nowhere — it stays with you," he told The Associated Press in 2024. "There’s a shadow."
Matar, a U.S. citizen born to Lebanese parents, reportedly became withdrawn after a 2018 trip to Lebanon, where Hezbollah is based. His lawyers have previously attempted to exclude evidence from his social media and digital activity, arguing that government searches were overly broad.
Rushdie, who was born in India, raised in Britain, and is now a U.S. citizen, gained international renown for his novel "Midnight's Children." However, "The Satanic Verses" brought him notoriety and condemnation from some Muslims who deemed it blasphemous. The controversy led to widespread protests and a fatwa issued by Iran's Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini in 1989, which drove Rushdie into hiding for years. While Iran has not recently emphasized the decree, it has never been formally rescinded. The Iranian government denied involvement in the 2022 stabbing, though a Foreign Ministry spokesperson at the time suggested Rushdie had invited trouble by insulting Islam.
Following the stabbing, Rushdie published a memoir titled "Knife" and later returned to fiction with the 2023 book "The Eleventh Hour." In November, he received a Dayton Literary Peace Prize for lifetime achievement.