Dutch Kickboxing Star Badr Hari Released, Expresses Regret Over Domestic Assault

"I have a lot of regrets about what happened. That’s for sure. I have obviously greatly disappointed the people I love. What I had to go through these last two years, I wouldn’t wish it on any father. I’ll stop there. Now I’m going to see my children," regrets Badr Hari in an interview with RTL Boulevard.

The kickboxer of Moroccan origin was arrested on Sunday after assaulting his ex-wife and mother of his five children at her home. Crime reporter John van den Heuvel filmed the scene. His arrest follows a complaint filed by the ex-wife who would be a victim of repeated violence from the Moroccan kickboxing champion.

Prior to Sunday’s assault, another incident occurred in September 2024, the public prosecutor’s office said. The court has banned him from approaching his ex-wife. He has been ordered to report in. If he fails to comply with this decision, he will return to prison.

This is not the first time Badr has been prosecuted for assault. In 2015, Hari was convicted for the assault of businessman Koen Everink, during an event at the Amsterdam Arena. He had received a two-year prison sentence, including ten months suspended. The kickboxer had however been acquitted of the alleged assault on his former partner. She had sent a text message to a friend to tell him what the Moroccan champion had done to her. "Badr has destroyed everything. He lost control. I have bruises all over. It will take a while before I can put on a bikini again. I have a concussion and the house is in ruins," she had written.