Salman Rushdie’s Attacker Sentenced To 25 Years In Prison After Conviction In Stabbing Case

<p>&nbsp;Hadi Matar, the man convicted of stabbing celebrated author Salman Rushdie during a 2022 lecture in New York, was sentenced on Friday to 25 years in prison. The attack left Rushdie blind in one eye and marked a violent episode in the author&rsquo;s life, which has long been shadowed by controversy.</p>
<p>The 27-year-old Matar was found guilty in February of attempted murder and assault by a jury, news agency AP reported. Rushdie, who was 77 at the time of the attack, did not attend the sentencing hearing held in western New York but submitted a victim impact statement. During the trial, Rushdie provided detailed testimony, recounting how he feared for his life when a masked assailant plunged a knife repeatedly into his head and body while he was being introduced at the Chautauqua Institution to speak on writer safety.</p>
<p>Before the sentence was delivered, Matar made a statement expressing his views on freedom of speech, calling Rushdie a hypocrite. &ldquo;Salman Rushdie wants to disrespect other people,&rdquo; Matar said, dressed in white-striped jail clothing and wearing handcuffs. &ldquo;He wants to be a bully, he wants to bully other people. I don&rsquo;t agree with that.&rdquo;</p>