Hadi Matar was arrested after the assault on Salman Rushdie on Friday.
The mom of the New Jersey man, who stabbed writer Salman Rushdie at a literary occasion, has mentioned that the 24-year-old “changed” after visiting Lebanon in 2018. Hadi Matar was arrested after stabbing Mr Rushdie 10 instances, together with within the neck and the stomach on Friday. He rushed onto the stage because the writer was about to offer a lecture in New York. Matar is going through expenses of tried homicide and assault, based on the New York Police Division (NYPD).
Talking to Every day Mail, Matar’s mom Silvana Fardos mentioned that her outgoing son was a moody and introvert individual following a go to to see his father.
“I was expecting him to come back motivated, to complete school, to get his degree and a job. But instead he locked himself in the basement. He had changed a lot, he didn’t say anything to me or his sisters for months,” she advised the outlet. Matar was born within the US to Lebanese mother and father.
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Ms Fardos, 46, mentioned Matar had banned her from coming into the basement the place he had locked himself up. He would sleep in the course of the days and was awake in the course of the night time.
“One time he argued with me, asking why I encouraged him to get an education instead of focusing on religion. He was angry that I did not introduce him to Islam from a young age,” she mentioned.
The lady additional advised Every day Mail that she had by no means heard of Mr Rushdie earlier than getting a frantic name from her daughter on Friday.
“I never read any of his books. I didn’t know that such a writer even exists. I had no knowledge that my son ever read his book,” mentioned Ms Fardos.
She, nonetheless, mentioned that the household shall be transferring on “without him”.
“As I said to the FBI I’m not going to bother talking to him again. He’s responsible for his actions. I have another two minors that I need to take care of. They are upset, they’re shocked. All we can do is try to move on from this, without him.”
Matar appeared in court docket on Saturday the place he pleaded not responsible to the costs slapped in opposition to him.
A preliminary evaluate of Matar’s social media confirmed him to be sympathetic to “Shia extremism” and the causes of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard (IRGC). Although there aren’t any direct hyperlinks between Matar and the IRGC, investigators reportedly discovered pictures of Iranian commander Qassem Solemani, who was assassinated in 2020, in a mobile phone messaging app belonging to Matar.
