Man charged with assaulting Salman Rushdie charged with attempted murder and assault

Hadi Matar, 24, of Fairview, New Jersey, has been charged with attempted murder after he allegedly jumped onto the stage and stabbed Salman Rushdie 15 times on the head and body

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Salman Rushdie assaulted on stage at Chautauqua facility

The man suspected of assaulting novelist Salman Rushdie on Friday has been charged with attempted murder and assault, prosecutors said Saturday.

Hadi Matar, 24, of Fairview, New Jersey, has been arrested following the incident on Friday, August 12.

The Satanic Verses author was on stage to lecture to an audience of hundreds on artistic freedom when he was allegedly stabbed in the neck and abdomen, receiving a total of 15 stab wounds.

His agent said he will "likely lose an eye" as a result of the attack and is currently on a ventilator in hospital.

Chautauqua County District Attorney Jason Schmidt said, "The person responsible for yesterday's attack, Hadi Mattar, has now been formally charged with attempted second degree murder and assault in second degree", in a press release published on Saturday.< /p>

"He was arraigned on these charges last night and remanded in custody without bail," the statement added.

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Matar was remanded in custody without bail and transferred from New York State Barracks in Jamestown to the county jail overnight.

Sir Salman claimed he was leading a 'normal' life in the weeks leading up to the horrific attack.

But since the release of his book in 1988, the British author of Indian origin has received death threats for his writings.