Hadi Matar

Hadi Matar is a Lebanese-American man who was convicted of stabbing Salman Rushdie onstage in 2022. Matar had previously been arrested for attempting to enter the United States with a one-way ticket to New York City. He was also known to have expressed extremist views online. Matar's attack on Rushdie was widely condemned, and he was subsequently convicted of attempted murder and assault. The incident highlighted concerns about the rise of extremism and the threat it poses to public figures and free speech.