The Indian-born British author was being introduced to the audience ahead of giving a lecture in New York state, when a man stormed the stage
Witness Pilar Pintagro told Sky News:"We were very scared because the first place was in the neck and that's where the blood started to splash everywhere, and then he stabbed him in the shoulders and continued stabbing several times because it was so fast.
Another witness Julia Mineeva Braun told Sky News that as Sir Salman was being introduced"all of a sudden from the left-hand side of the stage a short man, all in black, ran out, and he approached Mr Rushdie". Some of the scenes in the 1988 book depict a character modelled on the Prophet Muhammad and this was met with anger from some members of the Muslim community in the UK.