A “great person” was the Iranian Ayatollah Khomeini, for whom he had great respect. That’s what Hadi Matar said in an interview he gave at the detention center. The 24-year-old American, who attacked writer Salman Rushdie with a knife on Friday and seriously injured him a week ago, not only spoke to journalists on Thursday, but also appeared before the magistrate in Mayville, New York. The defendant pleaded not guilty; his public defender, meanwhile, was trying to get him some favors. A jury had already decided to charge Matar with attempted murder. The alleged killer lived in New Jersey and had no criminal record. He was born in California and is the son of Lebanese immigrants. His home village, Jaroun, is said to be a stronghold of Hezbollah, according to reports. Matar’s father has now locked himself in there and refuses to speak to reporters, he said.
Matar’s mother, who lives in the United States, has a different behavior. According to American media reports, she has separated from her son. Silvana Fardos described her son as a young man who spent more and more time in his room. Matar returned very changed from a trip to the Middle East in 2018, during which he visited his father. Parents divorced in 2004, father returned to Lebanon.
Matar’s mother told the British Chron about her son’s return four years ago: “I expected him to come back motivated, finish school, graduate and get a job. Instead, he locked himself in the basement.” Fardos said she felt for Rushdie and his family after the murder. She will no longer speak to her son. Matar is fully responsible for her own actions. Fardos said she did not raise her son with extreme religious ideas. Referring to the 1989 fatwa of Ayatollah Khomeini, who may have encouraged Matar to carry out the assassination, she said: “I don’t know anyone in Iran, my whole family is here”. , which is now bitterly confirmed.
Just read a few “few pages” of Rushdie
In an interview with the New York Post, the alleged killer said he didn’t like Salman Rushdie because he attacked Islam and “our beliefs”. He only read a few pages of the “Satanic Verses”. When Matar read online about Rushdie’s planned appearance at the Chautauqua Institution in western New York, he said he decided to attack the author at the time. Matar said he was surprised Rushdie survived the murder.
Since then, the magistrate has refused to release the accused on bail pending his hearing. Matar’s lawyer justified a corresponding request on the grounds that the alleged killer had no criminal record. Matar’s public defender also asked Foley to do something about the many attempts to contact journalists, his client receives hundreds of calls from media representatives. Reporting can lead to a biased jury. However, the judge did not take restrictive measures. Instead, he warned those involved in the process not to give further interviews.
Salman Rushdie, 75, survived the attack with serious injuries. His liver, an arm and an eye were injured. He is now on the mend, said Rushdie’s son Zafar and his management.
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