Hadi Matar
Terrorist charges have been levied against the man accused of stabbing Salman Rushdie.
A grand jury returned a three-count indictment charging 26-year old Hadi Matar with attempting to provide material support to Hezbollah, a designated foreign terrorist organization, engaging in an act of terrorism transcending national boundaries and providing material support to terrorists.
According to the court documents and statements made by the government in court, between September 2020 and August 2022, Matar attempted to provide material support and resources to Hezbollah by attempting to carry out a fatwa calling for the execution of Salman Rushdie, which Matar understood was endorsed by Hezbollah.
The indictment further alleges that Matar attempted to kill and did in fact assault Rushdie. It said Matar was motivated, in part, by a 2006 speech given by Hezbollah Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah, in which Nasrallah endorsed the fatwa calling for Rushdie’s death, which was originally issued in 1989.
Matar was arraigned Wednesday afternoon before U.S. Magistrate Judge Jeremiah McCarthy. A detention hearing will be held on August 7.
If convicted, Matar faces a maximum penalty of life in prison.
The FBI is continuing to investigate the case.
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