New York: Author Salman Rushdie was attacked on stage on Friday as he was about to deliver a lecture in New York.
An Associated Press reporter was witness to a man storming on to the stage at Chautauqua Institution and punching or stabbing Rushdie as he was being introduced.
The author looked like falling on the floor, before his attacker was restrained.
Salmon Rushdie stabbed at Chautauqua. He’s on the stage being treated. Before his scheduled speech. pic.twitter.com/xqeM79WseB
— Mary Newsom (@marynewsom) August 12, 2022
Rushdie has courted controversy before. His book ‘The Satanic Verses’ has been banned in Iran since 1988, as many Muslims consider it to be blasphemous.
Iran’s supreme leader, the late Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, then issued a fatwa calling for Rushdie’s death.
Iran has offered $3 million in reward for anyone who kills Rushdie.