A young man was stabbed to death in the street as he tried to protect a mother and her child from being harassed, Flemish media have reported.
Emergency services were called to a square on Duinstaat in Antwerp on Sunday, May 25th, following reports of a stabbing just after 4pm.
According to eyewitnesses, the victim - who was named locally as Wajdi Zairi, 32 – was fatally stabbed after stepping in to protect a woman who was allegedly being harassed by a young man as she sat on a bench with her child.
Zairi, a Tunisian national who had lived in Belgium for five years, was treated at the scene before being taken to hospital. He reportedly died of his injuries on Monday morning, May 26th.
An 18-year-old man has been arrested and is being held in police custody pending further inquiries.
In a statement, Wouter Bruyns, spokesperson for Antwerp Police told VRT NWS: “A person was stabbed in the Duinstraat shortly after 4pm. A passer-by performed resuscitation, then a group of cyclists took over until help arrived.
“The victim was then taken to hospital with life-threatening injuries. Shortly after the incident, the cycling team recognised the suspect from his description. We were able to arrest him. His involvement is being investigated further.”
“A perimeter was set up on site. The Federal Judicial Police laboratory will visit the scene to try to find any fingerprints. According to initial information, the victim intervened while the suspect was harassing others in a square.”
'We are speechless and overwhelmed'
Zairi’s parents are trying to repatriate their son’s body to Tunisia for burial, and a crowdfunding campaign has been set up to support his family. Hundreds of people gathered in Antwerp on Thursday for a vigil in memory of Zairi.
"As a family, we are speechless and overwhelmed by the loving reactions, support and attention,” the family told GVA. “We thank everyone for their sympathy and unconditional support during this difficult time.”
Initial reports suggested the victim’s name was Ilyes Zairi, but according to GVA, Ilyes is in fact the name of Zairi’s nine-year-old son.
