An American tourist was reportedly stabbed in the face by a Syrian asylum seeker in Germany while protecting two women being harassed on a tram.
John Rudat, 21, found himself in Dresden early Sunday when he intervened during an attack on women by two Syrian men, as noted in an online fundraiser initiated by his brother’s girlfriend, Molly.
Having just qualified as a paramedic and working as a part-time model, Rudat suffered a facial injury from a six-inch knife, according to the fundraiser’s details.
A pizza box sits next to a pool of blood from a knife attack on a German tram that injured an American tourist. ( Florian Varga/xcitepress)
“It is 11:57 a.m. right now. In three minutes, the man who attacked that young woman will be freed. He will be freed because he isn’t a citizen of Germany; he doesn’t even belong to the EU,” Rudat stated.
He continued, “He’s an immigrant, an illegal one, involved in drug dealing, and well-known here, particularly by the police. This incident isn’t unique; it’s not the first time he’s assaulted women, nor the first time the accomplice has threatened me with a six-inch knife.”
“If such acts can occur against Germans, followed by a release within 12 hours or less, where is the justice? Where is the accountability?” he queried. “If Germans must abide by such laws and structures, yet others commit violent acts and terrorize citizens without consequence, what can be done?”
In a statement, the U.S. Embassy in Berlin condemned the attack.
A bottle sits next to trash and a pool of blood on the German tram where an American tourist was stabbed in the face. ( Florian Varga/xcitepress)
The embassy noted on X, “While heroically stepping in to defend a fellow traveler, he was brutally assaulted. We call on German authorities for a prompt prosecution and severe punishment within legal boundaries. Safety is a shared responsibility—until everyone is protected, no one truly is.”
