The New York police took a 24-year-old man, Hadi Matar into custody who attacked author Salman Rushdie at a book event at Chautauqua Institution on Friday evening. Rushdie, is an Indian-origin best-selling author based in the UK and has faced Islamist death threats for years for writing the novel "The Satanic Verses".

Who is Hadi Matar?

The police identified the attacker as Hadi Matar and hails from New Jersey. Major Eugene Staniszewski of the New York State Police told the media on Friday that Hadi Matar jumped on the stage soon after Rushdie was introduced and stabbed him at least once in the neck and at least once in the abdomen. Major Staniszewski said authorities are in the "process of obtaining search warrants for various items. There was a backpack located at the scene. There were also electronic devices".

He further stated that the investigation is underway and there is no indication of a motive at the moment. Police did not describe the weapon used and said, "We are working with the FBI, the Sheriff’s Office and we will determine what the cause of this was and what the motive for this attack was."

While addressing a press conference, Staniszewski said that Matar's nationality is not known yet. He said, "Authorities are in the process of obtaining search warrants for various items. There was a backpack located at the scene. There was also electronic devices."