Iran: Writer Salman Rushdie is guilty of being attacked
The spokesman for the Iranian Foreign Ministry commented for the first time on the attack on the acclaimed writer who infuriated the Muslim world in the 1980s for his book on the Prophet Muhammad.
Rushdi was going to act as a representative of writers who had to flee into exile and are in danger because of their opinions
news agencies
08/15/2022
Monday, August 15, 2022, 09:55 Updated: 10:30
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The writer Salman Rushdie, who was attacked on Friday when he was about to give a speech in New York state, and his supporters are to blame for the attack, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Hanani said today (Monday) at a press conference.
Freedom of speech does not justify Rushdie's insults towards religion in his books, Hanani said.
He added that Iran has no new information about Rushdie's attacker other than what has been published in the media.
Rushdie is currently recovering in hospital after the attack, during which he was stabbed multiple times, and as a result he will likely lose his right eye, in addition to the damage to his arm and liver.
However, yesterday his condition improved and he was taken off the ventilator and is talking.
"But while his injuries changed his life, his sharp and defiant sense of humor remained intact," his son, Zafar Rushdie, said in a statement.
The attacker's house in New Jersey (Photo: GettyImages)
According to Ralph Henry Rees, co-founder of a project from Pittsburgh that offers refuge to writers in exile, called City of Asylum, shortly before he took the stage, he and Rushdie discussed the possibility of expanding the program throughout America.
In addition, Rushdie agreed to be the project's roving representative for writers whose lives are in danger.
He was preparing to tour the United States and encourage cities to provide shelter and protection to artists who are in danger.
Rees told The Guardian in his first interview since the attack, in which he injured himself, that the 75-year-old Rushdie was in high spirits when they reached the Chattaqua Institute lecture hall.
"We went on stage," Rees said.
"Rushdi wanted to talk about writers who are in exile and how they can be integrated into the communities."
After a moment, a man leapt across the stage towards them.
"It was irony and tragedy. The horror of reality," Rees said.
The suspect's driver's license (photo: official website, Twitter)
The attacker, 24-year-old Eddie Meter from New Jersey, was stopped by a police officer and taken into custody.
Authorities are now investigating what his motive was.
Matar arrived in the town a day before the incident with a fake driver's license, a fake credit card and an entry permit, according to the authorities.
According to Chattaqua County District Attorney Jason Schmidt.
Mater traveled by bus and paid in cash.
It is still unclear how the suspect entered the incident with a knife in his hand.
According to an eyewitness, there were no security checks at the entrance and there were no metal detectors at the event, he told CNN.
The president of the institute, Michael Hill, said that "We evaluate the level of security according to each incident and this time we thought it was definitely important, for this reason a state police officer and the sheriff were present at the scene," he told CNN.
Mater Kfar is charged with attempted second-degree murder and second-degree assault with a deadly weapon, said his lawyer Nathaniel Baron.
Mater is "cooperative" and communicates openly, he said.
If convicted of both charges, Matar faces up to 32 years in prison.
He is described by those around him as a quiet and withdrawn person.
Desmond Boyle, the owner of the State of Fitness Boxing Club that Mater signed up for in April, told CNN that "You know that look that says, 'That was the worst of my life,' Mater had that look every day," he said.
A member of the gym, Roberto Irizarry, said that Mater came to the gym three or four times a week and was "very quiet".
"The atmosphere here is family - we try to involve everyone, but he remains distant and withdrawn," he said.
More in Walla!
"Horrifying attack": The investigation into the attempted murder of writer Salman Rushdie is moving forward, but the authorities are having trouble uncovering the motive
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