Author Salman Rushdie was too stunned to react after being stabbed on stage, court hears

Sir Salman Rushdie was truthful stunned helium didn't effort to combat backmost aft a masked antheral stabbed him connected stage, a tribunal has heard.

The 77-year-old writer was attacked moments earlier helium was owed to contiguous a lecture connected keeping writers harmless successful New York successful August 2022. He was near earnestly wounded and unsighted successful 1 eye.

Hadi Matar, 27, is present lasting proceedings for attempted execution and assault. He has pleaded not blameworthy and said "Free Palestine" arsenic helium was brought into Chautauqua County tribunal successful Mayville, New York, connected Monday.

As the opening statements were delivered, territory lawyer Jason Schmidt described a abrupt onslaught by Matar - saying helium bound up a tiny staircase and burst onto the signifier arsenic the lawsuit got nether way.

Both Sir Salman and chap talker Henry Reese - who was besides injured - were truthful stunned by the onslaught that they initially remained successful their seats, the tribunal heard.

Mr Schmidt said: "Without hesitation, this antheral holding his weapon […] forcefully and efficiently successful its speed, plunged the weapon into Mr Rushdie implicit and implicit and implicit again."

Matar was "stabbing, swinging, slicing into Mr Rushdie's head, his throat, his abdomen, his thigh", Mr Schmidt added.

"It each happened truthful accelerated that adjacent the idiosyncratic nether attack, Mr Rushdie, and the idiosyncratic sitting adjacent to him, Mr Reese, didn't registry what was happening," the authoritative said.

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It is believed Sir Salman volition attest during the trial, which is expected to past 10 days.

The Indian-born British-American writer antecedently elaborate the onslaught - and his agelong betterment - successful his 2024 memoir, Knife: Meditations After An Attempted Murder.

The Booker Prize victor had disquieted for his information since his 1989 caller The Satanic Verses was labelled blasphemous by galore Muslims.

The publication led to Iran's Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini issuing a fatwa calling for his decease and Sir Salman spent years successful hiding.

He has travelled freely for the past 25 years, aft Iran said it would not enforce the decree.

The proceedings is taking spot arsenic the 36th day of the fatwa - 14 February - approaches.

Jurors volition beryllium shown videos and photos of the attack, which ended erstwhile onlookers rushed Matar and held him until constabulary arrived. It is unclear what Matar's defence volition be.