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A 28-year-old man has been convicted in a federal terrorism prosecution stemming from the 2022 stabbing of acclaimed author Salman Rushdie, the United States Department of Justice announced.
A federal jury found Hadi Matar, a resident of Fairview, New Jersey, guilty of attempting to provide material support to Hezbollah, committing an act of terrorism transcending national boundaries, and supplying material support to terrorists, according to an official statement issued by the US Justice Department on Wednesday. Addressing the verdict, Assistant Attorney General for National Security John Eisenberg noted that Matar spent "more than a year immersing himself" in the ideology of Hezbollah, a US-designated terrorist group, whilst "preparing to act on a fatwa issued by Iran's Ayatollahs calling for Mr. Rushdie's murder." "His brutal attack on Mr. Rushdie during a peaceful speaking event is a chilling reminder of the global reach of Iranian terrorism. With today's verdict, justice has been done, and Matar will pay for his crimes," Eisenberg added. The assault transpired in August 2022 in New York, where Rushdie was struck in the neck moments before he was scheduled to deliver a lecture. The session's co-moderator also sustained injuries during the incident; however, Rushdie suffered severe wounds that necessitated placement on life-support equipment. The veteran writer's late-1980s novel, "The Satanic Verses," sparked widespread international outrage after sections were deemed blasphemous by sections of the Muslim community. In 1989, Iran's former Supreme Leader Ruhollah Khomeini proclaimed a fatwa instructing Muslims to execute Rushdie over the publication. Evidentiary material presented by government prosecutors demonstrated that Matar spent over twelve months investigating the religious decree before executing the knife attack in 2022, according to the Department of Justice. Matar faces a maximum sentence of life imprisonment, with formal sentencing scheduled to take place in November. (ANI)
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