Salman Rushdie's assailant identified, NY authorities say

Salman Rushdie, the author of a blasphemous anti-Islam book, has been attacked on stage during an event in New York, according to US media.

A man rushed to the stage at the Chautauqua Institution and attacked Rushdie as he was being introduced, a witness told Reuters, adding the attacker was subsequently restrained.

Police said Rushdie suffered an apparent stab wound to his neck and was transported by helicopter to the hospital.

After stabbing, Rushdie was flown to UPMC Hamot Surgery Center in Erie, Pennsylvania and underwent surgery. Andrew Wylie, Rushdie's agent, said he was on a ventilator with a damaged liver, severed nerves in an arm and an eye he was likely to lose.

Rushdie is the author of “The Satanic Verses”, a blasphemous novel about Islam published in 1988 which sparked Muslims’ outrage across the globe.

Following the publication of the book, Imam Khomeini, the founder of the Islamic Republic, issued a fatwa (religious decree) calling for Rushdie’s death.

MNA/FNA14010522000025