Summary

  • Author Salman Rushdie, 75, has been stabbed on stage at an event in New York state

  • Eyewitnesses say he was struck many times by an attacker wearing a mask

  • Rushdie was stabbed in the neck and abdomen

  • Police say the suspect has been identified as Hadi Matar, a 24-year-old from New Jersey

  • Members of the audience intervened to stop and detain the attacker, officers say

  • Officials say they assessed security and a state trooper was on the premises to make the arrest

  • The author remains in surgery, which has been ongoing for a number of hours

  • Rushdie faced death threats and went into hiding for nearly a decade after his book The Satanic Verses was published in 1988

Live Reporting

Edited by Nathan Williams

  1. Male suspect in custody following Rushdie stabbing

    New York State Police have confirmed that a male suspect has been taken into custody after the apparent stabbing of Salman Rushdie prior to a speaking event in Chautauqua, New York.

    In a statement, police said a male suspect ran up onto the stage and attacked Rushdie and an interviewer.

    A State Trooper assigned to the event immediately took the suspect into custody.

  2. Salman Rushdie stabbed in neck - NY state police
    Breaking

    New York State Police have announced that Salman Rushdie has suffered an apparent stab wound to the neck.

    A statement said he was flown by helicopter to a local hospital. It also confirmed the attacker was in police custody.

    A statement said:

    On August 12, 2022, at about 11 am, a male suspect ran up onto the stage and attacked Rushdie and an interviewer. Rushdie suffered an apparent stab wound to the neck, and was transported by helicopter to an area hospital. His condition is not yet known. The interviewer suffered a minor head injury."

  3. No details on Salman Rushdie's condition yet

    We have no further information on Salman Rushdie's condition yet.

    An Associated Press reporter witnessed a man storm the stage at the Chautauqua Institution and begin punching or stabbing Rushdie as he was being introduced.

    The man was restrained and Rushdie was then seen on the floor, being treated, with his legs being held in the air.

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  4. Theatre on lockdown

    The Chautauqua Institution, a charity and performance venue in New York State, is in the midst of its summer season.

    An artist at the venue told BBC that rehearsals had been going as normal this morning until the attack at the amphitheatre.

    The venue - which sits on a 2,000 acre site in the southwest corner of New York - has been on lockdown since, she said.

  5. What happened when The Satanic Verses was published?

    • Salman Rushdie's surrealist, post-modern novel sparked outrage, demonstrations and calls for a ban as soon as it was published in 1988 - but also counter-demonstrations protesting against censorship and book-burning
    • A fatwa, or edict, from the then Supreme Leader of Iran, Ayatollah Khomeini, calling for Rushdie's death took things to an entirely new level, sparking a global diplomatic crisis
    • Fifty-nine people died across the world - the figure includes translators who were murdered, and people who died during demonstrations
    • Rushdie himself went into hiding for nine years as a result of the threats
    • Many Muslims consider the novel to be blasphemous but Rushdie, who has become an outspoken advocate of freedom of expression, says it is not
    • Hardliners in Iran say Khomeini's decree remains in place, even though some Iranian governments have moved to distance themselves from it

  6. Chautauqua Institution confirms 'emergency' taking place

    A receptionist at the Chautauqua Institution has confirmed to the BBC that an "emergency" is taking place, although she would not provide more details.

    The Chautauqua Institution's police force - similar in function to a university campus police department - declined to make any statement.

    It is unclear what condition Salman Rushdie is in.

  7. Rushdie was due to give lecture on the US as a safe haven

    Salman Rushdie was on stage at the not-for-profit Chautauqua Institution in western New York when he was attacked.

    The event, billed as Salman Rushdie & Henry Reese, was part of a series looking at "redefining the American home" in the 21st Century and was set to feature a "discussion of the United States as asylum for writers and other artists in exile and as a home for freedom of creative expression".

    The institution had partnered with City of Asylum, a residency program for writers living in exile under threat of persecution.

    A video shows people getting out of their seats in a crowded theatre in the moments after the attack.

  8. Video shows panic after the attack

    People were seen rushing to the stage at the Chautauqua Institution in the immediate aftermath of the attack.

    We still don't have confirmation as to whether Rushdie was stabbed.

  9. Rushdie punched or stabbed - witness

    A reporter from the Associated Press news agency witnessed the attack on Salman Rushdie just ahead of a lecture he was due to give in western New York.

    The journalist saw a man storm the stage at the Chautauqua Institution and begin punching or stabbing Rushdie as he was being introduced, the news agency says.

    The author was taken or fell to the floor, and the man was restrained, it reports.

  10. Author Salman Rushdie attacked on stage
    Breaking

    British-American novelist Salman Rushdie, whose writing led to death threats from Iran in the 1980s, has been attacked on stage at an event in New York, the Associated Press news agency reports.

    Rushdie has been pictured being treated on stage after the incident, which happened before he was due to give a lecture.

    There are no further details at this stage. Stay with us for the latest updates.