Salman Rushdie "alive" after attack | Top points

New York, Aug 12: Salman Rushdie, the Mumbai-born controversial author who faced Islamist death threats after writing 'The Satanic Verses', was attacked and suffered an apparent stab wound to the neck when a man stormed the stage as he was getting ready to deliver a lecture during an event here on Friday, New York Police said.

Here are the top points to know about the incident:

• 75-year-old Rushdie was stabbed by a man on stage while he was being introduced at the event of the Chautauqua Institution in Western New York.

• He fell through a barrier to the stage and was seen with blood on his hands. The audience tackled the attacker and Rushdie was then treated onstage following the assault.

• "State Police are investigating an attack on author Salman Rushdie prior to a speaking event at the Chautauqua Institution in Chautauqua, NY. On August 12, 2022, at about 11 a.m., a male suspect ran up onto the stage and attacked Rushdie and an interviewer," New York Police said in a statement.

• "Rushdie suffered an apparent stab wound to the neck, and was transported by helicopter to an area hospital. His condition is not yet known.

• The interviewer suffered a minor head injury. A State Trooper assigned to the event immediately took the suspect into custody. The Chautauqua County Sheriff's Office assisted at the scene," it said.

• New York State Governor Kathy Hochul said author Salman Rushdie is "alive". "He is alive, he has been transported, airlifted to safety," Hochul said in remarks at an event on 'Preventing Gun Violence, Protecting New Yorkers'.

• "We're monitoring the situation. Rushdie is getting the care he needs at a local hospital. I'll be giving more information on the identity of the perpetrator and the case that'll be brought in that part of the state," she said.

• Rushdie's fourth book The Satanic Verses in 1988 forced him into hiding for nine years. A year after the book's publication, Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini called for Rushdie's execution for publishing the book for its blasphemous content.
• Since the 1980s, Rushdie's writing has led to death threats from Iran, which has offered a USD 3 million reward for anyone who kills him.