Antwerp Man Fatally Stabbed While Defending Woman from Harassment

The assault took place in Duinplak square, on Duinstraat (Seefhoek) in Antwerp. Ilyes was chatting with friends in the afternoon on this square when he noticed a young mother who was visibly being harassed by a young man, about 18 years old. "I was sitting on a bench while my four-year-old son was playing. This young man was so close that he touched me. I moved a bit, but he moved with me. I felt threatened and tried to look away," Manuela Raymaekers, 28, testifies to 7sur7. But the young man, his face covered by a scarf, insists, going so far as to threaten the young mother to harm her son if she doesn’t agree to have sexual relations with him. Panicked, Manuela puts on her headphones and tries to ignore him.

Seeing the scene from afar, Ilyes decides to intervene. He approaches the teenager and speaks to him kindly. "He told him to stop and leave. No physical violence, just words. Ilyes asked what was wrong with him. But the boy couldn’t say anything," says Ashraf, a witness. The young man distances himself, then suddenly pulls out a butcher knife from his back pocket and violently stabs Ilyes in the chest before fleeing. The victim collapses. "I tried to revive Ilyes. I took off my sweater and pressed on his chest wound. But I saw life slowly disappear from his gaze. His heart stopped beating. He died in my arms," says Manuela, still in shock. Meanwhile, Ilyes’ friends chase the teenager and manage to stop him two streets away, with the help of the police.

The attacker was presented to the investigating judge on Monday. He should remain in detention, pending the results of the investigation opened to determine the motives for his act. The victim had been living in Belgium for five years. Without papers, he worked part-time in the construction sector to make ends meet. He left his native Tunisia about ten years ago to build a better future in Europe. He lived in Germany for a while, where he met his first wife with whom he had a son. He moved to Antwerp after the end of this relationship. He was "a great guy. He had a big heart and was always there for others. What he did on Sunday was typical of him. He never hurt anyone," says his friend Ashraf.

For her part, Manuela feels guilty: "I feel like Ilyes died because of me. Because he wanted to help me. I think of his son, his ex-wife... He never deserved this. But for me, he will remain the bravest man I have ever known." The neighborhood residents are organizing a silent vigil on Thursday in his memory. An opportunity, according to the organizers, to "reflect on what happened" and "send a clear signal against violence, street intimidation, and growing insecurity in our neighborhood."