Salman Rushdie has lost sight in one eye and use of one hand after stabbing attack

Sir Salman Rushdie has lost sight in one eye and the use of one hand after he was brutally stabbed at a New York literary event.

The 75-year-old author, whose novel The Satanic Verses prompted calls for his death, was knifed in the neck and torso more than dozen times two months ago.

The Indian-born British writer was attacked as he walked on stage to deliver a speech at the Chautauqua Institution in upstate New York on August 12.

The extent of Rushdie’s injuries have been unknown until this weekend when his agent Andrew Wylie gave an update on his condition.

“[His wounds] were profound, but he’s [also] lost the sight of one eye,” he said.

“He had three serious wounds in his neck.

“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 say whether Sir Salman is still being treated at the hospital.

The agent noted acknowledged the possibility of the attack was something he and the author had discussed in the past.

He added: “I think the attack was probably something that Salman and I have discussed in the past, which was that 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.

“So, you can’t protect against that because it’s totally unexpected and illogical. It was like John Lennon’s murder,” he added.

Hadi Matar, 24, from New Jersey, has been charged with Mr Rushdie’s stabbing.

The extent of Rushdie’s injuries have been unknown until this weekend when his agent Andrew Wylie gave an update on his condition (AFP via Getty Images)

He pleaded not guilty to second-degree attempted murder and assault charges in August.

Police have said Sir Salman was about to begin his scheduled lecture when Matar charged the stage with a knife in hand, stabbing the British author in the neck and the torso.

The writer spent nearly a decade in hiding after The Satanic Verses was published, as the novel is considered blasphemous by some.

A religious edict calling Muslims to kill him was issued by Ayatollah Khomeini, the Iranian leader, just a year after his book was published, forcing Sir Salman into hiding.