MAYVILLE, N.Y. — A New Jersey man was convicted Friday of attempted murder for stabbing author Salman Rushdie multiple times on a New York lecture stage in 2022.

Jurors delivered the verdict after deliberating for less than two hours, also finding Hadi Matar, 27, guilty of assault for wounding a man who was on the Chautauqua Institution stage with Rushdie at the time.

Matar ran up to Rushdie as he was about to speak on Aug. 12, 2022, and stabbed him more than a dozen times before a live audience. The attack left the 77-year-old prizewinning novelist blind in one eye.

Rushdie was the key witness during seven days of testimony, describing in graphic detail his life-threatening injuries and long and painful recovery.

Matar, who stood for the verdict, looked down but had no obvious reaction when the jury delivered it. As he was led out of the courtroom in handcuffs, he quietly uttered, “Free Palestine,” echoing comments he has frequently made while entering and leaving the trial.

The judge set sentencing for April 23. Matar could receive up to 25 years in prison, which District Attorney Jason Schmidt noted is the maximum for a conviction on attempted murder in the second degree.

Matar was disappointed, according to his public defender, Nathaniel Barone.

“But I thought, quite frankly, that he was well prepared for the verdict, regardless of what it was,” Barone went on to say.

In his comments following the verdict, Schmidt said video evidence helped make the case “rock solid.”

“We had a number of different angles to show the jurors,” he said. “It really is as compelling as it can possibly get.”

Schmidt added: “Mr. Matar came into this community as a visitor. And really, it’s my job to make sure that he stays a resident of New York state for the next 25 years.”

During his closing argument, assistant public defender Andrew Brautigan told the jury that prosecutors had not proved that Matar intended to kill Rushdie. The distinction is important for an attempted-murder conviction.

Schmidt said while it’s not possible to read Matar’s mind, “it’s foreseeable that if you’re going to stab someone 10 or 15 times about the face and neck, it’s going to result in a fatality.”

Rushdie, who has been famous worldwide since the novel “Midnight’s Children” was published more than 40 years ago, told jurors he thought he was dying when a masked stranger ran onto the stage and stabbed and slashed at him until being tackled by bystanders.

Rushdie showed jurors his now-blinded right eye, usually hidden behind a darkened eyeglass lens.

Schmidt reminded jurors Friday about the testimony of a trauma surgeon, who said Rushdie’s injuries would have been fatal without quick treatment.

He also slowed down video showing Matar approaching the seated Rushdie from behind and reaching around him to stab at his torso with a knife. Rushdie raises his arms and rises from his seat, walking and stumbling for a few steps with Matar hanging on, swinging and stabbing until they both fall and are surrounded by onlookers who rush in to separate them.

Rushdie is seen flailing on the ground, waving a hand covered in bright red blood. Schmidt freezes on a frame showing Rushdie, his face also bloodied, as he’s surrounded by people.