Salman Rushdie

The author was about to give a talk at a prestigious event in Chautauqua, N.Y., when he was stabbed in the neck.

LeVan said attendees also came on to the stage to try to help. “I went to the talk to find out why people would want to kill someone for their writing,” he said. People in attendance were told to evacuate the venue after the attack. Friday’s attack on Rushdie, who has become the standard-bearer for the cause of literary freedom of expression, stunned free speech advocates and organizations. Book stores and people connected to the book around the world, such as publishers, were attacked. By 2005, Khomeini’s successor, Ali Khamenei, said the fatwa was still valid, and in 2016, state-run media outlets added an additional $600,000 to the bounty on Rushdie’s head, bringing it to well over $3 million.

Salman Rushdie -- a celebrated author and winner of the world's top literary prizes - - was attacked on stage before giving a lecture at the Chautauqua ...

She said a state trooper "stood up and saved his life and protected him as well as the moderator who was attacked as well. He said a man in a black shirt appeared to be "punching" the author. Some Muslims found the book to be sacrilegious and it sparked public demonstrations. The witness, who was 75 feet from the stage, did not hear the attacker say anything or see a weapon. Rushdie's treatment of delicate political and religious subjects turned him into a controversial figure. Rushdie was airlifted to a local hospital, police said.

Rushdie, the author whose writing led to death threats from Iran in the 1980s, was attacked and apparently stabbed in the neck by a man who rushed the stage ...

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'The Satanic Verses' author Salman Rushdie has been attacked while on stage in New York State, according to the Associated Press.

Rushdie also appeared as himself in the likes of Curb Your Enthusiasm and Bridget Jones’s Diary. His other works include 1975’s Grimus, 1983’s hame and 1999’s The Ground Beneath Her Feet. An endocrinologist, who was in the audience and offered assistance, told the New York Times Rushdie had multiple stab wounds and there was a pool of blood under his body. Images on AP show him surrounded by others who rushed onstage immediately after he was attacked. Rushdie has both British and American citizenship and the lecture was supposed to be the first in a seven-part series hosted by the non-profit organization. At about 11:10 a.m. ET, the Associated Press said its reporter witnessed a man storm the stage at the Chautauqua Institution in Western New York and begin punching or stabbing 75-year-old Rushdie before the man was restrained. The attacker is in police custody and Rushdie was flown by helicopter to a local hospital, according to the statement, which also said the person interviewing Rushdie suffered a minor head injury.

Salman Rushdie, the author whose writing led to death threats from Iran in the 1980s, was attacked Friday as he was about to give a lecture in western New ...

That year, Rushdie published a memoir, “Joseph Anton,” about the fatwa. In 2012, a semi-official Iranian religious foundation raised the bounty for Rushdie from $2.8 million to $3.3 million. An Associated Press reporter witnessed a man storm the stage at the Chautauqua Institution and begin punching or stabbing Rushdie as he was being introduced.

The attack happened at about 10:45 a.m. shortly after Mr. Rushdie took the stage to deliver a lecture at the Chautauqua Institution. The author spent years ...

She said that Mr. Rushdie had multiple stab wounds, including one to the right side of his neck, and that there was a pool of blood under his body. “It is an attack on freedom of speech and thought, which are two bedrock values of our country and of the Chautauqua Institution,” Mr. Schumer wrote. The writer Ayad Akhtar said he never saw Rushdie bring along a security detail in recent years, whether he was at the theater, out to dinner or on stage at a public event. “It’s very open, it’s very accessible, it’s a very relaxed environment,” he said. After Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the Supreme Leader of Iran after the 1979 Iranian Revolution, found the book blasphemous and issued a fatwa against Mr. Rushdie, urging Muslims to kill the author, he went into hiding for years. Rita Landman, an endocrinologist who was in the audience, said that Mr. Rushdie had multiple stab wounds, including one to the right side of his neck, and that there was a pool of blood under his body. “It’s very open, it’s very accessible, it’s a very relaxed environment,” he said. Mr. Rushdie published a memoir, “Joseph Anton,” about the fatwa. “There was just one attacker,” said Elisabeth Healey, 75, who was in the audience. “There was a huge security lapse,” said Ms. Bulette’s husband, John, 85, who witnessed the attack. Mr. Rushdie was taken by helicopter to a local hospital, the state police said in a statement. “Just hours before the attack, on Friday morning, Salman had emailed me to help with placements for Ukrainian writers in need of safe refuge from the grave perils they face,” she said in a statement.

A USA TODAY employee witnessed a man storm the stage in a "bizarre" attack on Salman Rushdie, who suffered an "apparent stab wound to the neck."

In it, Rushdie puts his spin on the Miguel de Cervantes classic with a modern-day Don Quixote satirizing former President Donald Trump’s America. The book was long-listed for the Booker Prize. His book "The Satanic Verses" has been banned in Iran since the late 1980s, and many Muslims consider it blasphemous. Seward said that he did not hear the man shout anything and that Rushdie tried to get away from the attacker and fell. "PEN America is reeling from shock and horror at word of a brutal, premeditated attack on our former President and stalwart ally, Salman Rushdie," Nossel said. He witnessed a man "bound" toward the stage from the audience with his "arms out swinging." New York police said a state trooper assigned to the event took a suspect into custody after the attack.

Author Salman Rushdie was reportedly stabbed before giving a speech at the Chautauqua Institution in New York on Friday when an unidentified man stormed the ...

Rushdie’s book "The Satanic Verses" has been banned in Iran since 1988, as many Muslims consider it to be blasphemous. A State Trooper assigned to the event immediately took the suspect into custody. An Associated Press reporter witnessed a man storm the stage at the Chautauqua Institution and begin punching or stabbing Rushdie as he was being introduced.

A number of writers and authors spoke out about the attack, with the author Neil Gaiman writing that he was “shocked and distressed.”

“It is an attack on freedom of speech and thought, which are two bedrock values of our country and of the Chautauqua Institution,” Mr. Schumer wrote. “American Muslims, like all Americans, condemn any violence targeting anyone in our society,” said Ibrahim Hooper. “That goes without saying. Gov. Kathy Hochul of New York said she had directed state police to assist with the investigation into Mr. Rushdie’s attack. “He has devoted tireless energy to assisting others who are vulnerable and menaced.” Prime Minister Boris Johnson of Britain said in a Twitter post that he was “appalled that Sir Salman Rushdie has been stabbed while exercising a right we should never cease to defend. Right now my thoughts are with his loved ones.

Salman Rushdie, the author whose writing led to death threats from Iran in the 1980s, was attacked and apparently stabbed in the neck Friday by a man who ...

In 2012, Rushdie published a memoir, “Joseph Anton,” about the fatwa. The death threats and bounty led Rushdie to go into hiding under a British government protection program, including a round-the-clock armed guard. An Associated Press reporter witnessed a man confront Rushdie on stage at the Chautauqua Institution and begin punching or stabbing him 10 to 15 times as he was being introduced. He said the attack lasted about 20 seconds. Amid gasps, spectators were ushered out of the outdoor amphitheater. Salman Rushdie, the author whose writing led to death threats from Iran in the 1980s, was attacked and apparently stabbed in the neck Friday by a man who rushed the stage as he was about to give a lecture in western New York.

Salman Rushdie, the author of "The Satanic Verses," was brutally attacked just as he was about to speak to an audience at the Chautauqua Institution.

The big picture: Rushdie spent nearly a decade in hiding after he faced death threats and a bounty for his murder from the Iranian government in the late 1980s.

- By Friday evening, Rushdie was on a ventilator and could not speak, his agent, Andrew Wylie, told theNew York Times, adding that he will likely lose one eye, the nerves in his arm were severed, and that his liver was stabbed and damaged. - Rushdie was initially given medical treatment by a doctor that was in the audience before he was airlifted to a local hospital, where he was still undergoing surgery Friday afternoon. British author Salman Rushdie was attacked on stage at an event in western New York on Friday and was stabbed at least once in the neck and at least once in the abdomen, state police said.

The Indian-born novelist was ordered to be killed by Iran in 1989 because of his writing.

Iranian organisations, however, have raised a bounty worth millions of dollars for his murder. A State Trooper present at the event took the attacker into custody, police reported. Salman Rushdie, the Indian-born novelist who was ordered to be killed by Iran in 1989 because of his writing, was attacked on stage at an event in New York and suffered an apparent stab wound to the neck, according to New York State Police and an eyewitness.

Author was attacked by a man storming the stage as he was about to give a lecture in western New York.

A statement from New York state police said: “On August 12, 2022, at about 11am, a male suspect ran up on to the stage and attacked Rushdie and an interviewer. Rushdie suffered an apparent stab wound to the neck, and was transported by helicopter to an area hospital. You need a pass to access the grounds but it is not too difficult get in. A state trooper assigned to the event immediately took the suspect into custody. Eyewitness reports said that a man wearing a black mask rushed onstage and began to attack Rushdie as he was sitting on the stage. The statement continued: “The interviewer suffered a minor head injury. Speaking to the Guardian, Japanese-born English novelist Kazuo Ishiguro said: “He’s been incredibly brave through all these years, continuously putting himself on the line for the right to think and speak freely, despite the dangers that never went away. But here is an individual who has spent decades speaking truth to power, someone who’s been out there unafraid, despite the threats that have followed him his entire adult life.” Chautauqua has always prided itself as a place where people can engage in civil dialogue. An Associated Press reporter witnessed a man storm the stage at the Chautauqua Institution and begin assaulting Rushdie as he was being introduced. Phone footage captured moments after the attack shows audience members scrambling on to the stage to help. Photos taken by an Associated Press reporter show Rushdie lying on his back, with a first responder crouched over him.

By Kanishka Singh and Jonathan Allen. NEW YORK (Reuters) - Salman Rushdie, the Indian-born novelist who spent years in hiding after Iran urged Muslims to ...

"I felt like we needed to have more protection there because Salman Rushdie is not a usual writer," said Anour Rahmani, an Algerian writer and human rights activist who was in the audience. "The worst thing Chautauqua could do is back away from its mission in light of this tragedy, and I don't think Mr. Rushdie would want that either." Rushdie published a memoir in 2012 about his cloistered, secretive life under the fatwa called "Joseph Anton," the pseudonym he used while in British police protection. "A man jumped up on the stage from I don't know where and started what looked like beating him on the chest, repeated fist strokes into his chest and neck," said Bradley Fisher, who was in the audience. A doctor in the audience helped tend to Rushdie while emergency services arrived, police said. "The news is not good," Andrew Wylie, his book agent, wrote in an email.

The author was set to deliver a lecture at the Chautauqua Institution when an assailant rushed at him.

Since then, Mr. Rushdie has published eight novels and a 2012 memoir, “ Joseph Anton,” about the fatwa. Mr. Rushdie seemed perfectly comfortable out in the world, he said. Mr. Koch said that several people worked to separate the assailant from Mr. Rushdie, and were able to do so before a uniformed officer arrived and placed the attacker in handcuffs. But the fatwa remains in place, reportedly with a bounty attached from an Iranian religious foundation of some $3.3 million as of 2012. He was barred from the country for more than a decade. The attack was decried by literary figures and public officials. Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the Supreme Leader of Iran after the 1979 Iranian Revolution, issued a religious edict known as a fatwa on Feb. 14, 1989, ordering Muslims to kill Mr. Rushdie. A price was put on his head of several million dollars. Mary Newsom, who attended the lecture, said that some people thought at first that it might be a stunt. On Friday morning, any sense that threats to his life were a thing of the past was dispelled when an attacker rushed the stage of Chautauqua Institution here in Western New York, where Mr. Rushdie was scheduled to give a talk about the United States as a safe haven for exiled writers. “The news is not good,” Mr. Wylie said in an email. The brazen attack on Mr. Rushdie shook the literary world. Mr. Rushdie’s agent, Andrew Wylie, said Friday evening that Mr. Rushdie was on a ventilator and could not speak.

The Satanic Verses author was stabbed in the neck and abdomen at an event in New York state.

"Salman has been an inspirational defender of persecuted writers and journalists across the world. There has been no reaction from the Iranian government to Mr Rushdie's stabbing. Mr Reese is the co-founder of a non-profit organisation that provides sanctuary to writers exiled under threat of persecution. A doctor in the audience gave Mr Rushdie first aid. A year after the book's release, Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khomeini called for Mr Rushdie's execution. He was taken to a hospital in Erie, Pennsylvania, by helicopter.

The venue where renowned author Salman Rushdie -- whose controversial work has triggered death threats -- was stabbed Friday had rejected previous ...

Staff and audience members rushed to the attacker and put him on the ground before a state trooper took him into custody, police said. "He came in the left side and leapt across the stage and just lunged at him. Also injured Friday was Henry Reese, co-founder of the Pittsburgh nonprofit City of Asylum, who was scheduled to join Rushdie in a discussion, police said. "We will assess for each of the events at the Institution what we think the appropriate level of security is and that's an ongoing process that we work in concert with local law enforcement on." "The nerves in his arm were severed; and his liver was stabbed and damaged. Authorities have not disclosed the type of weapon that was used in the attack.

Just as the mind recoils at the sight of a single book burned, the spilled blood of an author inspires revulsion.

In some ways, he never stopped fighting the debate that first ignited around the fatwa, with some defending him unreservedly and others arguing that perhaps his perceived insult of Islam was a mistake and a needless provocation on his part. Rushdie himself has become something of an absolutist on the freedom of expression. Rushdie has not been targeted by his own state, of course—after living in hiding for years in London, he has lived openly in New York for the past two decades. The Yiddish poets and writers whom the dictator ordered shot in the basement of the Lubyanka prison. That it was here that Rushdie was struck repeatedly with a knife is a terrible irony. He was about to speak to an audience at the Chautauqua Institution, a cottage community that was founded in the late 19th century as a place for religious learning, and that has since become an oasis of education and discussion every summer.

Chautauqua, N.Y. (AP) -- Salman Rushdie, whose novel “The Satanic Verses” drew death threats from Iran's leader in the 1980s, was stabbed in the neck and ...

Famed author Salman Rushdie is recovering after a brutal attack, Hawaii voters head to the polls and more news to start your weekend.

The Phoenix Mercury and the New York Liberty (both 15-20) currently hold the seventh and eighth seeds while the Minnesota Lynx and the Atlanta Dream (both 14-21) are one game behind. Residents and lodging visitors were allowed to return to normal use of water. Restaurants were told by city officials to clos and hundreds of residents were told they "must reduce water use, including dishwashing, laundry, showering, and only flush when absolutely necessary." The droughts have caused water quality to deteriorate, with parts of Hungary issuing a weekend swimming ban. Bestselling author Salman Rushdie was attacked Friday as he was about to give a lecture at the Chautauqua Institution, a nonprofit education center in western New York, suffering stab wounds to the neck and abdomen. Rushdie's agent, Andrew Wylie, said the writer was on a ventilator Friday evening, with a damaged liver, severed nerves in an arm and an eye he was likely to lose.

Salman Rushdie was attacked at a Chautauqua Institution panel in western New York on Friday.

Rushdie was the former president of PEN America, a nonprofit that defends freedom of expression and supports persecuted writers. Rushdie's book "The Satanic Verses" forced him into hiding after it was banned in Iran and a $3 million bounty was put on his head. A State Trooper assigned to the event immediately took the suspect into custody." "Rushdie suffered an apparent stab wound to the neck, and was transported by helicopter to an area hospital. "On August 12, 2022, at about 11 a.m., a male suspect ran up onto the stage and attacked Rushdie and an interviewer," the statement read. A state trooper who was present took the suspect into custody with the assistance of a local sheriff's deputy.

Charges are pending against suspect. Chautauqua Institution to continue summer programming. Security measures to be reviewed.

"This evening, we are called to take on fear and the worst of all human traits — hate. In it, Rushdie puts his spin on the Cervantes classic with a modern-day Don Quixote, satirizing President Donald Trump’s America. The book has been long-listed for the Booker Prize. Today now, we're called to take on fear and the worst of all human traits: hate." MPAC has been a vanguard of the right of freedom of speech, tracing our work back to 1989 when we spoke out against the fatwa issued against Mr. Rushdie. Freedom of expression is a constitutional and Islamic human right. The New York State Police on Friday said a trooper next to the stage "immediately" took Matar into custody, with the help of a Chautauqua County Sheriff's Office deputy. Chautauqua County Institution President Michael Hill on Friday said the appropriate level of security is assessed for every event at the institution. "What we experienced at Chautauqua today is unlike anything in our 150-year history. "We know that Mr. Rushdie is a controversial novelist and we're all aware of the history here. "There was no security stopping us from getting to the stage," Susko said. "There was screening to prevent attendees from bringing in a cup of coffee. Authorities said several members of the institution's staff, as well as audience members, rushed Matar on stage and forced him to the floor. Rushdie was given immediate first aid by a doctor in the audience before emergency medical services arrived.

A 24-year-old New Jersey man was charged with attempted murder in Friday's attack, which occurred in Chautauqua, N.Y. The author underwent surgery and was ...

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Suspect, 24, from Fairview, New Jersey remanded without bail over alleged attack on author in New York.

A helicopter crew flew Rushdie to a hospital in nearby Erie, Pennsylvania, where he underwent surgery. He suffered a relatively minor facial wound during the attack. The crime, under New York law, can carry up to 25 years in prison upon conviction. Rushdie suffered three stab wounds to the right front of his neck, another four to his stomach, one each to his right eye and chest, and a cut to his right thigh, Schmidt said on Saturday. Investigators had earlier booked Matar, of Fairview, New Jersey, with one count of attempted second-degree murder in Rushdie’s stabbing and one count of second-degree assault on a man who shared a stage with the author at the time of the attack on Friday, according to a statement from authorities. The man suspected of stabbing the novelist Salman Rushdie at a literary festival in western New York pleaded not guilty to charges of attempted murder and assault at a court appearance on Saturday.

After the author Salman Rushdie was stabbed on Friday at the Chautauqua Institution in western New York, state and federal investigators were trying to ...

The novel’s Norwegian publisher was shot three times in 1993 outside his home in Oslo and was seriously injured. A spokeswoman for a hospital in Erie, Pa., where Mr. Rushdie is being treated, said it would not provide information on patient conditions. A woman in a gray Jeep Rubicon in the driveway kept her windows up, waving off reporters as she sped away. In court, prosecutors said that the attack on the author was premeditated and targeted. Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, who led Iran after its 1979 revolution, issued an edict known as a fatwa on Feb. 14, 1989. When Mr. Matar, a United States citizen, was arrested, he was carrying two fake IDs, according to a law enforcement official. People started to congregate in the aisles. Mr. Rushdie, who had been living relatively openly after years of a semi-clandestine existence, had just taken a seat to give a talk when a man attacked him. A video on TikTok that was subsequently taken down showed the chaotic scene moments after the attacker had jumped onto the stage at the normally placid institution. Security at the Chautauqua Institution is minimal. A crowd of people immediately rushed to where the author lay on the stage to offer aid. Nathaniel Barone, a public defender, entered a plea of not guilty on his behalf.

Rushdie, who has faced death threats over his writing, was scheduled to give a lecture at the education center Chautauqua Institution in Chautauqua, in ...

"Today, the country and the world witnessed a reprehensible attack against the writer Salman Rushdie," Sullivan said in a statement. "People in the audience had gone up on the stage when they saw this and then grabbed the attacker, who still had a knife, I think," he told the station. Among them, Hitoshi Igarashi, who translated the book into Japanese, was stabbed to death in 1991 on the campus where he taught literature. "Salman Rushdie has been targeted for his words for decades but has never flinched nor faltered," she continued. In 2012, the group increased the bounty from $2.8 million to $3.3 million. An AP reporter who was at the event saw a man go on stage and attack Rushdie as he was being introduced, the news service said. "We'll continue to look at providing the maximum security that we can," Hill said. Thank you to the swift response of— Governor Kathy Hochul (@GovKathyHochul) @nyspolice& first responders following today's attack of author Salman Rushdie.Our thoughts are with Salman & his loved ones following this horrific event. He was treated for a facial injury at a nearby hospital and has since been released, police said. The nerves in his arm were also severed and his liver was damaged in the stabbing, his agent said. Matar pleaded not guilty to the charges in court on Saturday, the Associated Press reported. The author will likely lose one eye as a result of the attack, his agent said.

The man accused of carrying out a stabbing attack against 'Satanic Verses' author Salman Rushdie has entered a not-guilty plea in a New York court on ...

He and Rushdie had planned to discuss the United States as a refuge for writers and other artists in exile. He said during a New York talk that year that terrorism was really the art of fear. But afterward some longtime visitors to the center questioned why there wasn’t tighter security given the threats against Rushdie and a bounty of more than $3 million on his head. The death threats and bounty led Rushdie to go into hiding under a British government protection program, which included an around-the-clock armed guard. Visitors don’t pass through metal detectors or undergo bag checks, and most people leave the doors to their century-old cottages unlocked at night. In 1993, the book’s Norwegian publisher was shot three times and survived. “The Satanic Verses” drew death threats after it was published in 1988, with many Muslims regarding as blasphemy a dream sequence based on the life of the Prophet Muhammad, among other objections. Iran’s theocratic government and its state-run media assigned no motive for the attack. Authors, activists and government officials cited Rushdie’s courage for his longtime advocacy of free speech despite the risks to his own safety. “Truth. Courage. Resilience. The ability to share ideas without fear. Rushdie was likely to lose the injured eye. “Salman Rushdie — with his insight into humanity, with his unmatched sense for story, with his refusal to be intimidated or silenced — stands for essential, universal ideals,” the statement read.

Messages of outrage and support are pouring in from all corners of the globe after writer Salman Rushdie was stabbed at an upstate New York venue where he ...

"He has devoted tireless energy to assisting others who are vulnerable and menaced." "Devastated by the news about @SalmanRushdie. He was the first writer I ever met and his determination to defend his freedom (and that of others) in the face of religious extremism has been a constant inspiration. He has just been the victim of a cowardly attack by the forces of hatred and barbarism. American writers and organizations have also been left reeling from the attack. Bravo to the warrior and dutiful man who attacked the Apostate and wicked Salman Rushdie. The hand of the warrior must be kissed. "Appalled that Sir Salman Rushdie has been stabbed while exercising a right we should never cease to defend.

Jill and I were shocked and saddened to learn of the vicious attack on Salman Rushdie yesterday in New York. We, together with all Americans and.

Salman Rushdie—with his insight into humanity, with his unmatched sense for story, with his refusal to be intimidated or silenced—stands for essential, universal ideals. Jill and I were shocked and saddened to learn of the vicious attack on Salman Rushdie yesterday in New York. We, together with all Americans and people around the world, are praying for his health and recovery. And today, we reaffirm our commitment to those deeply American values in solidarity with Rushdie and all those who stand for freedom of expression.

Salman Rushdie remained hospitalized Saturday after suffering serious injuries in a stabbing attack as praise poured in for him from the West but he was ...

The Chautauqua Institution, about 55 miles (89 kilometers) southwest of Buffalo in a rural corner of New York, has served for more than a century as a place for reflection and spiritual guidance. In 2012, Rushdie published a memoir, “Joseph Anton,” about the fatwa. “Salman has been an inspirational defender of persecuted writers and journalists across the world,” McEwan said in a statement. The title came from the pseudonym Rushdie used while in hiding. He and Rushdie had planned to discuss the United States as a refuge for writers and other artists in exile. The death threats and bounty led Rushdie to go into hiding under a British government protection program, which included a round-the-clock armed guard. Matar was born a decade after “The Satanic Verses” first was published. In 1993, the book’s Norwegian publisher was shot three times and survived. But after the attack, some longtime visitors to the center questioned why there wasn’t tighter security for the event, given the decades of threats against Rushdie and a bounty on his head offering more than $3 million to anyone who killed him. An AP reporter witnessed the attacker confront Rushdie on stage and stab or punch him 10 to 15 times as the author was being introduced. The book was banned in Iran where the late leader Grand Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini issued a 1989 fatwa, or edict, calling for Rushdie’s death. Rushdie was likely to lose the injured eye.

Indian-born British author Salman Rushdie was brutally attacked this week. He has been the subject of death threats since his book The Satanic Verses was ...

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President Joe Biden on Saturday condemned the frenzied attack on Salman Rushdie on a New York lecture stage that has left the author on a ventilator.

“Salman Rushdie—with his insight into humanity, with his unmatched sense for story, with his refusal to be intimidated or silenced—stands for essential, universal ideals,” Biden said in the statement. And today, we reaffirm our commitment to those deeply American values in solidarity with Rushdie and all those who stand for freedom of expression.” “Jill and I were shocked and saddened to learn of the vicious attack on Salman Rushdie yesterday in New York,” Biden said in a statement released by the White House. “We, together with all Americans and people around the world, are praying for his health and recovery.

Berkeley bomb squad officers detonate a charge a suspected pipe bomb harmless at Cody's Bookstore in Berkeley in February 1989. The officer on the left uses a ...

He was taken off a ventilator and able to talk Saturday, but he remained hospitalized with serious injuries and may lose the eye, reports said. On the night Cody’s was attacked, someone also hurled a brick and a Molotov cocktail into a nearby Waldenbooks store. Still, Ross acknowledged he might remember the vote as foolhardy, rather than principled and heroic, had people died in a subsequent bomb attack. No one was hurt, though the bomb charred a bookshelf and the firefighters who responded left significant damage, Ross said. Undeterred, Ross opted to keep “The Satanic Verses” in stock, hoping to sidestep controversy if he left it out of the front window display. While nobody left a threat or came forward later, Ross and investigators saw the bombings as retaliation for his decision to sell the book.

Renowned author Salman Rushdie remains hospitalized after being repeatedly stabbed during an on-stage attack in western New York that left him at risk of ...

"We will assess for each of the events at the Institution what we think the appropriate level of security is and that's an ongoing process that we work in concert with local law enforcement on." The book, which sparked demonstrations, was banned in multiple countries. CNN exclusively spoke with State of Fitness Boxing Club owner Desmond Boyle, who said Matar enrolled at the gym in North Bergen, New Jersey in April. He was taken to hospital in an ambulance and later released with a facial injury. He came in every day like that," Boyle told CNN on Saturday. "He lunged onto Mr. Rushdie and started pummeling him with his hand, very quickly," Davies said.

Sir Salman Rushdie has been taken off his ventilator and is talking as he recovers from being stabbed in the US.

"The Satanic Verses" author Salman Rushdie was taken off a ventilator and able to talk Saturday, a day after he was stabbed in upstate New York.

He and Rushdie had planned to discuss the United States as a refuge for writers and other artists in exile. But afterward some longtime visitors to the Chautauqua Institution questioned why there wasn't tighter security given the threats against Rushdie and a bounty of more than $3 million on his head. As of Saturday afternoon, the novel ranked No. 13 on Amazon.com. It looked like it was the worst day of his life," Boyle said. After nine years of seclusion, Rushdie cautiously resumed more public appearances. "The Satanic Verses" drew death threats after it was published in 1988, with many Muslims regarding as blasphemy a dream sequence based on the life of the Prophet Muhammad, among other objections. Iran's theocratic government and its state-run media assigned no motive for the attack. He said Matar resisted attempts by him and others to welcome and engage him. Khomeini died that same year, but the fatwa remains in effect. "His resources don't matter to me. These are the building blocks of any free and open society." Authors, activists and government officials cited Rushdie's courage and longtime advocacy of free speech despite the risks to his own safety.