Who attacked Salman Rushdie in New York? Why was Rushdie attacked? Is Salman Rushdie still alive?

Author Salman Rushdie, who suffered years of Islamist death threats after writing his controversial book The Satanic Verses, has been attacked on stage in New York state.

The Satanic Verses, his fourth book, in 1988 forced him into hiding for nine years.

This is because the book sparked outrage among some Muslims, who considered its content to be blasphemous. Furthermore, the book was banned in some countries.

A year after the book’s release, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khomeini called for Mr Rushdie’s execution.

He offered a $3m (£2.5m) reward in a fatwa – a legal decree issued by an Islamic religious leader.

The bounty over Mr Rushdie’s head remains active, and although Iran’s government has distanced itself from Khomeini’s decree, a quasi-official Iranian religious foundation added a further $500,000 to the reward in 2012.

Then on Friday, August 12, 2022, Rushdie was speaking at an event at the Chautauqua Institution, New York when he was attacked.

New York State Police said a male suspect whose details has not yet been made public ran up onto the stage and attacked Mr Rushdie and an interviewer.

“Rushdie suffered an apparent stab wound to the neck,” the police statement said.

Witnesses told US media that Rushdie was stabbed multiple times in the neck and torso area, and appeared to fall backwards as he tried to move away from the assailant.

New York Governor Kathy Hochul told a press conference about an hour after the incident and announced that Mr Rushdie was alive.