A jury has found Hadi Matar guilty of federal terrorism charges for the 2022 attack on author Salman Rushdie, adding to his existing state prison sentence.

Hadi Matar was convicted Wednesday of federal terrorism charges in the 2022 stabbing of author Salman Rushdie. The verdict follows a previous conviction in New York state court, where Matar was sentenced to 25 years in prison for attempted murder. The federal conviction carries a potential life sentence for the attack, which left Rushdie blinded in his right eye.

The 2022 Attack

In August 2022, Salman Rushdie was preparing to deliver a speech on writers' safety at an amphitheater in western New York when he was attacked. Matar, who was 27 at the time of the state trial, rushed the stage and stabbed the author more than a dozen times in front of a live audience. Another speaker appearing alongside Rushdie was also wounded during the incident before spectators subdued the attacker.

Legal Proceedings and Motive

During the state trial, District Attorney Jason Schmidt argued that the attack was unprovoked and witnessed by the audience, stating that the identity of the attacker was not in question. While the defense argued that the prosecution needed to prove specific legal elements beyond the occurrence of the attack, the jury ultimately convicted Matar of attempted murder and assault. In the separate federal case, authorities alleged that Matar was motivated by a 2006 endorsement of a 1989 fatwa against Rushdie by a terrorist organization.