Sir Salman Rushdie knew 'quite clearly' he was dying as he faces knife attack accused in court

Sir Salman took the basal successful the proceedings of the antheral accused of attempting to termination him astatine a literate gathering successful New York and described the onslaught including the infinitesimal helium thought helium was dyingt

Sir Salman Rushdie described successful graphic item the frenzied moments a masked knifeman attacked him, telling a New York court, “It occurred to maine rather intelligibly I was dying”

The 77-year-old writer addressed jurors connected the 2nd time of grounds astatine the proceedings of Hadi Matar, 27, who has pleaded not blameworthy to attempted execution and battle successful the attack. It was the archetypal clip since the incident that Rushdie recovered himself successful the aforesaid country with the antheral accused of trying the termination him.

"I lone saw him astatine the past minute," Sir Salman told the Mayville tribunal successful New York. "I was alert of idiosyncratic wearing achromatic clothes, oregon acheronian apparel and a achromatic look mask. I was precise struck by his eyes, which were acheronian and seemed precise ferocious."

Sir Salman said helium archetypal thought his knife-wielding attacker was striking him with a fist. Describing the infinitesimal helium knew it was much than a punch, helium said: "But I saw a ample quantity of humor pouring onto my clothes. He was hitting maine repeatedly. Hitting and slashing."

The Pakistan-born British writer said helium was struck much times successful his thorax and torso and stabbed successful his thorax arsenic helium struggled to get away. "I was precise severely injured. I couldn't basal up immoderate more. I fell down," helium said. While lying connected the stage, helium recalled "a consciousness of large symptom and shock, and alert of the information that determination was an tremendous quantity of humor that I was lying in."

"It occurred to maine that I was dying. That was my predominant thought," helium said. His wife, Rachel Griffiths, cried from her spot in the courtroom's 2nd row. Sir Salman was blinded successful 1 oculus successful the onslaught and spent months recovering, a process helium elaborate successful a memoir released past year.

A talker who was to look with Rushdie besides was wounded. Jurors heard opening statements Monday, followed by grounds from staffers astatine the Chautauqua Institution, the nonprofit creation and acquisition centre wherever the onslaught happened astir 75 miles southbound of Buffalo. Matar has been successful custody since helium was subdued by spectators aft the attack. The proceedings is expected to past up to 2 weeks. Jurors are improbable to perceive astir a fatwa issued by the precocious Iranian person Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini calling for Rushdie's death, according to District Attorney Jason Schmidt.

Sir Salman, the writer of "Midnight's Children" and "Victory City," spent years successful hiding aft Khomeini announced the fatwa successful 1989 pursuing the work of the caller "The Satanic Verses," which immoderate Muslims see blasphemous. Schmidt has said discussing Matar's motive would beryllium unnecessary successful the authorities trial, fixed the onslaught was seen by a unrecorded assemblage that was expecting to perceive Rushdie contiguous a lecture connected keeping writers safe.

"This is not a lawsuit of mistaken identity," Schmidt said during opening statements Monday. "Mr Matar is the idiosyncratic who attacked Mr Rushdie without provocation." A nationalist defender representing Matar told jurors that the lawsuit is not arsenic straightforward arsenic prosecutors person made it retired to be.

"The elements of the transgression are much than 'something truly atrocious happened' - they're much defined," Lynn Schaffer said. "Something atrocious did happen, thing precise atrocious did happen, but the territory lawyer has to beryllium overmuch much than that."

In a abstracted indictment, national authorities allege Matar was driven to enactment by a violent organization's 2006 endorsement of the fatwa. A aboriginal proceedings connected national coercion charges volition beryllium scheduled successful US District Court successful Buffalo.