Hadi Matar, the radical Islamic terrorist charged with stabbing Satanic Verses author Salman Rushdie multiple times, has been found guilty of attempting to carry out a fatwa and providing support to terrorists in federal court.
| PULSE POINTS |
❓ WHAT HAPPENED: Hadi Matar, the man who attacked author Salman Rushdie in 2022, has been found guilty of attempting to carry out a fatwa and providing material support to Hezbollah. 📺 DETAIL: Back in August 2022, then-24-year-old Hadi Matar, a U.S.-born Muslim of Lebanese descent, stabbed Salman Rushdie multiple times while he was giving a public lecture in Chautauqua, western New York. The attack left Rushdie blind in one eye. On Wednesday, the now-28-year-old Matar was found guilty in federal court of attempting to carry out a fatwa (an Islamic legal ruling) issued by the Iranian government. He was found guilty of three charges: attempting to provide material support to Hezbollah (an Iran-backed terrorist group based in Lebanon), committing an act of terrorism that transcended national boundaries, and providing material support to terrorists. The fatwa was issued by the Islamic Republic’s then-Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Khomeini, back in 1989. The fatwa called for Rushdie’s death due to his novel The Satanic Verses, which is regarded as blasphemous by Muslims. Matar reportedly spent a year studying the fatwa. Matar is already serving a 25-year sentence after being convicted in state court last year. Prosecutors argued that Matar was inspired to carry out the attack by the fatwa and Hezbollah’s ideology. His writings, which were presented as evidence, referenced “Jihad” and the “need to kill him [Rushdie] ASAP” as well as evidence of Matar praising Hezbollah’s leadership. 💬 KEY QUOTE: “He wanted to be forever revered as a Hezbollah martyr.” – Federal Prosecutor Timothy Lynch 🎯 IMPACT: Matar faces a maximum of life in prison. He will be sentenced on November 3. The case underscores the enduring influence of Islamic fatwas issued decades ago, as well as the role of Iran-backed terror groups like Hezbollah in enabling global terrorism. This story underscores the longstanding tension between freedom of speech and Islam in the West. |
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