Sir Salman Rushdie
(Picture: PA Wire)Sir Salman Rushdie has lost sight in one eye and the use of one of his hands after being attacked on stage in August, his agent has revealed.
Sir Salman, the Indian-born British author whose writing led to death threats from Iran in the 1980s, had been due to deliver a lecture at the Chautauqua Institution, New York state, when a man rushed the stage and stabbed him.
In an interview with Spanish newspaper El Pais, Sir Salman’s agent, Andrew Wyle said the 75-year-old has “lost the sight of one eye” following the attack.
"He had three serious wounds in his neck," Mr Wylie said.
"One hand is incapacitated because the nerves in his arm were cut. And he has about 15 more wounds in his chest and torso. So, it was a brutal attack."
Mr Wylie refused to reveal if Sir Salman remains in hospital as he didn’t want to risk giving away his whereabouts.
"He’s going to live... that’s the more important thing," he added.
Mr Wylie said an attack "was probably something that Salman and I have discussed in the past".
"The principal danger that he faced so many years after the fatwa was imposed is from a random person coming out of nowhere and attacking him," the agent said.
"So, you can’t protect against that because it’s totally unexpected and illogical. It was like John Lennon’s murder."
Hadi Matar, 24, was arrested for allegedly stabbing Sir Salman. He was charged with one count of second-degree attempted murder, which carries a maximum sentence of 25 years in prison, and one count of second-degree assault - Matar has pleaded not guilty to the charges.
Sir Salman had faced years of threats over his book The Satanic Verses, which has been banned in Iran since 1988 as many Muslims consider it blasphemous.
The release of the book moved Iranian leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini to issue a fatwa calling for the writer’s death in 1989.
