Salman Rushdie Attacker Indicted On Terrorism Charges

The man accused of trying to kill the author Salman Rushdie has been charged with terrorism for allegedly acting on behalf of Hezbollah, according to documents unsealed Wednesday.

Hadi Matar, a 26-year-old American of Lebanese descent who was already charged by the state of New York for the 2022 stabbing attack, has now been indicted by a grand jury on three counts that include attempting to provide material to support a foreign terrorist organization, said the indictment dated July 17 but not unsealed until now.

That organization is Lebanon's Iran-backed movement Hezbollah, the US Justice Department said.

In August 2022 Rushdie, now 77, lost his sight in his right eye after the attack by a knife-wielding assailant, who jumped on stage at an arts gathering in New York state. Rushdie was stabbed about 10 times.