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Rushdie
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Salman Rushdie, a 75-year-old Indian-British writer, is in critical condition after being assassinated in New York State on August 12, local time. The man who stabbed him has been charged with attempted murder.
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The latest news is that one day after the assassination, Rushdie was off the ventilator and was able to speak again.
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The suspect, Hadi Matar, has pleaded not guilty and was remanded in custody without bail, prosecutors in Chautauqua County, N.Y., said.
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Mattar is accused of running on stage at an event at a local education center and attacking Rushdie and an interviewer.
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Rushdie’s manager, Andrew Wylie, said after the attack that Rushdie had a nerve in his arm severed, his liver damaged and he could lose an eye.
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Rushdie, 75, has faced death threats for years after his novel “The Satanic Verses” was deemed blasphemous by some Muslims.
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In January 2004, an Indian Muslim protested Rushdie’s visit to Mumbai.
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Police arrested Mattar in Fairyo, New Jersey, shortly after the Xuetoko attack.
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The suspect wore a face shield and prison uniform when he appeared in court Saturday afternoon before pleading not guilty.
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“This will be a long-lasting legal process, and this is only the very early stages,” District Attorney Jason Schmidt said in a statement.
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Rushdie received substantial support and the attack was denounced as a violation of free speech.
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U.S. President Joe Biden said in a statement late Saturday that he was “shocked and saddened” by the “vicious attack.”
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Biden said Rushdie has refused to be “intimidated or suppressed” throughout his career, advocating for “fundamental, universal ideals.”
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stabbed 10 times
Authorities said the writer was stabbed at least 10 times in the face, neck and abdomen and damaged his liver.
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Rushdie’s interviewer, Henry Reese, suffered minor head injuries. Rees is the co-founder of a nonprofit that provides shelter for persecuted writers in exile.
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image source,PA Medium
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Rushdie in 1993
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Police, who have not yet identified a motive, said on Friday they wanted to examine a backpack and electronic devices found at the center.
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NBC reported that a review of Matar’s social media accounts showed he was sympathetic to the IRGC’s cause.
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The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps is Iran’s main military and political force, however, no links have been established.
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A Lebanese official told The Associated Press that Mattar was born in the United States to parents who immigrated from Lebanon.
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Two security officials were on duty at the center when the attack took place, and one of them made the arrest.
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But some tourists questioned why the security measures for a man with a bounty of more than $3 million weren’t stricter.
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Some viewers said the venue lacked basic security measures, such as luggage screening and metal detectors.
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Like others planning to attend the writer’s lecture, Matar has already received a pass to the school, the group’s president said.
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Who is Rushdie?
Indian-born novelist Rushdie shot to fame in 1981 with Midnight’s Children, which sold more than a million copies in the UK alone. Rushdie has faced numerous death threats during his 50-year writing career, but he is one of the most famous British writers of all time, winning the Booker Prize in 1981.
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His fourth book, The Satanic Verses, published in 1988, forced him to go into hiding for nearly 10 years.
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“Satan’s Verses”
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The surreal, postmodern novel has sparked outrage among some Muslims, who say its content is blasphemous, and has been banned in some countries.
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A year after the book’s release, Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Khomeini, offered a $3 million reward for Rushdie’s killing. A quasi-official Iranian religious foundation followed up with an additional $500,000 bounty in 2012.
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The Iranian government has had no response to Rushdie’s assassination. Iranian media reported that he was an apostate.
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Rushdie, a British-American author, has become an outspoken advocate for free speech, defending his work on several occasions. His next work is scheduled to be completed in 2023.
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