Following the attack, the "The Satanic Verses" author was rushed to a hospital where he was undergoing surgery. The author was taken to a hospital in Erie, Pennsylvania, by helicopter.
"Salman will likely lose one eye; the nerves in his arm were severed; and his liver was stabbed and damaged," BBC quoted his agent Andrew Wylie as saying.
Rushdie's agent Andrew Wylie said in a statement that currently, the author is currently on ventilator and unable to speak. Also, there are high chances that Rushdie may one eye, Wylie added.
ALSO READ: Salman Rushdie latest news: ‘The Satanic Verses’ writer may lose an eye
Meanwhile, police have detained a suspect from New Jersey's Fairview, named as Hadi Matar, 24. According to the police, the suspect ran onto the stage and attacked Rushdie and an interviewer at the Chautauqua Institution in western New York state, reported BBC.
Though this is the first time Rushdie was attacked like this, he has been under constant threats. Previously, he received multiple death threats from Iran's government in the 1980s, after his mentioned book was published in 1988.
Also, several fatwas were issued against him in the past following his book launch. Lets have a look at those:
September 1988: Rushdie's 'The Satanic Verses' was published in London.
October 1988: India became first country to ban the novel. Following this, the book was banned in many countries with large Muslim communities (13 in total: Iran, Bangladesh, Sudan, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Kenya, Thailand, Tanzania, Indonesia, Singapore, Venezuela, and Pakistan)
January 1989: Copies of 'The Satanic Verses' were burnt in the United Kingdom's Bradford.
13 February 1989: With the novel published in the United States, American Cultural Center in Islamabad was attacked. 5 people died.
14 February 1989: The first supreme leader of Iran – Sayyid Ruhollah Musavi Khomeini – issued fatwa for Rushdie to be killed on Radio Tehran.
7 March 1989: The United Kingdom and Iran broke diplomatic relations over the Rushdie controversy.
1991: Rushdie's Japanese translator was killed and his Italian translator was stabbed.
1993: Around 37 people were killed in a hotel arson fire which was targeted at his Turkish translator.
24 September, 1998: The government of Iran, then headed by Mohammad Khatami, revoked Fatwa against Rushdie and said it will not carry out Fatwa. He gave a public commitment that it would "neither support nor hinder assassination operations on Rushdie."
2005: Khomeini's successor of Iran, Ayotollah Ali Khomeini said Rushdie's killing would be authorised by Islam.
2006: Rushdie was knighted by UK's Queen Elizabeth II.
2010: Anwar al-Awlaki published an Al-Qaeda hit list in Inspire magazine, including Rushdie along with other figures claimed to have insulted Islam.
January 2012: Rushdie was due to appear at the Jaipur Literature Festival, later cancelled his event appearance, and a further tour of India at the time, citing a possible threat to his life.
November 2015: Former Indian minister P Chidambaram acknowledged that banning 'The Satanic Verses' was wrong.
2016: A bounty of $2.8 million was put on Rushdie's head.
12 August, 2022: Rushdie was stabbed multiple times by a man who stormed the stage as the author was ready to deliver a lecture in western New York. He was arrested.
With AFP inputs.
