An American model who was reportedly stabbed in the face while defending two women from attackers in Germany has spoken of how he will wear his scars with ‘pride’.
John Rudat was on holiday in Europe when he intervened to stop two women being attacked on a tram, sustaining significant injuries and nearly losing an eye in the process.
Now, in an interview with journalist Julian Reichelt, the 21-year-old has spoken about his ordeal and claimed he would do it all again.
John Rudat acted heroically but paid a price
Rudat remains in hospital following the attack, which took place in Dresden on Sunday.
He became involved after seeing two men accosting a woman on a tram.
A 21-year-old Syrian national was arrested after the attack but released due to lack of evidence; the second remains at large, according to Bild.
Speaking from his hospital bed, Rudat - a model from Upstate New York - said: “The injury to the face, the cut to the nose, it severed my nose in two and part of my lip here.
“It just nicked the eyelid.
“Just a centimeter off and I would have lost my eye for sure.”
However, he added: “Certainly I’ll have a scar.
“But you know, it was worth it, and I’ll wear it with pride.”
Rudat hit out at his attackers in an Instagram video after the incident, before claiming in this latest interview that the whole incident came down to a ‘problem of violence’.
He added: “An act of violence perpetrated on somebody that could not defend themself.
“That’s the problem. That’s the real root of this.
“The problem to me wasn’t anybody’s skin color, wasn’t anybody’s race.
“It was the fact that a woman was being harassed and assaulted.
“My reaction was proportionate to exactly that.
“I would have protected any woman against any race and color of man.”
Rudat was in the country visiting his old exchange family
Rudat had been staying in Dresden to visit his host family from a foreign exchange program, and expressed concerns about the safety of the city compared to when he had previously visited.
“I’ve since then noticed from traveling back here a few times since then that this reality of safety in Dresden, from my perspective, has become a little bit more dangerous,” he told the journalist.
While his modelling career remains part-time, Rudat has recently qualified as an EMT, and his brother Logan told the New York Post that his brave intervention comes as no surprise.
The 22-year-old said: “I would have been surprised if he hadn’t stepped in,
“It’s part of his character.
“That’s just the way we were raised.”
He added that he hopes his brother will be able to return to the US in the coming weeks.
The US embassy in Germany issued a statement after the fact, imploring German authorities to bring the attackers to justice.
That statement read: “We urge German authorities to swiftly bring the perpetrators to justice and punish them to the fullest extent permitted by law.
“Safety is a collective responsibility - no one is safe until all are safe.”