Hadi Matar

Salman Rushdie's agent says the author has lost sight in one eye and the use of a hand as he recovers from an attack from a man who rushed the stage at an August literary event in western New York, according to a published report.

The man charged over the attack, US-born muslim, Hadi Matar, 24, has pleaded not guilty to attempted murder

Salman Rushdie is on the road to recovery and showing signs of his "feisty and defiant" self, family and friends said Sunday, days after a shocking assault left him on a ventilator with multiple stab wounds.

Just hours after Friday's attack at a literary event in western New York state, the British author had undergone emergency surgery for potentially life-threatening injuries.

Salman Rushdie is "on the road to recovery," his agent confirmed Sunday, two days after the author of "The Satanic Verses" suffered serious injuries in a stabbing at a lecture in upstate New York.

Salman Rushdie, who spent years in hiding after an Iranian fatwa ordered his killing, was on a ventilator and could lose an eye following a stabbing attack at a literary event in New York state on Aug. 12. 

The British author of "The Satanic Verses", which sparked fury among some Muslims, had to be airlifted to hospital for emergency surgery following the attack.