The assailant who attacked world-famous writer Salman Rushdie with a knife has been formally charged. Hadi Matar, 24, was charged with attempted murder, assault with a deadly weapon and bodily harm against Hadi Matar, 24, on Thursday, August 2.

Under the article on attempted murder alone, the defendant could face up to 25 years in prison. The accused appeared before the court in a black and white striped prison uniform and handcuffed. He reiterated that he considers himself innocent. The judge refused to release Matar on bail.

Attack on Salman Rushdie

Matar was arrested on Aug. 12 following a knife attack on Anglo-Indian writer Salman Rushdie, best known for his acclaimed novel The Satanic Verses, which many Muslims consider offensive to Islam, the Koran and the Prophet Muhammad. Rushdie, 75, was seriously injured and underwent urgent surgery. He is currently recovering.

The reason for the attack remains unknown. According to the defendant’s mother, Matar acquired radical views during a trip to his homeland in Lebanon. Hadi Matar himself, in an interview published on August 17 with The New York Post, said that he had read only a few pages of the novel “The Satanic Verses” and had a negative attitude towards Rushdie. “I don’t like this man. I don’t think he’s a very good man,” Matar said, adding that Rushli “attacked Islam.”

In 1989, the then spiritual leader of Iran, Ayatollah Khomeini, called for the assassination of Salman Rushdie for insulting the Prophet Muhammad. Hadi Matar did not say in her interview whether Khomeini’s call influenced his actions.