Deutsche Welle reporter Adonis Alkhaled is still awaiting the outcome of a police investigation into a violent attack by people he says appeared to be bodyguards at a concert in Düsseldorf, western Germany, in October 2024.
The incident attracted significant media coverage at the time, as well as condemnation from the state media minister, a spokesman for then-Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Germany’s main journalist union, DJV, and Reporters Without Borders.
Although Alkhaled has video footage of the incident and a year has passed, police and state prosecutors are still investigating unidentified people on suspicion of malicious injury and defamation.
Düsseldorf police declined to comment, as the investigation is ongoing. State prosecutors have not yet responded to a request for comment.
Alkhaled, the head of the Syrian-German TikTok team at DW’s Arabic service, was attacked after interviewing Syrian hip-hop star Al Shami by people who, according to him, appeared to be part of the singer’s security team.
Al Shami, a major star and TV personality in the Arab-speaking world, has a large following in Germany and was due to take the stage at the Mitsubishi Electric Halle in Düsseldorf.
“It was very scary,” Alkhaled remembered. “The way they were beating me, I thought they were professional boxers. It was not like they were beating me for the first time. I am very happy that I came out of it, because they could have done even better.”
Al Shami’s management ‘deeply regrets’ the incident
Alkhaled said that one of the attackers – whom he said appeared to be a bodyguard – began arguing with him before the interview began.
Al Khaled said, once Al Shami sat for a short video interview, the same man interrupted the interview, kicked the camera and began verbally abusing him.
The singer then chased away the attacker, a man Alkhaled believes was friendly to him.
According to Alkhaled, once the interview ended, the attacker approached him in the hallway with three other men.
He then grabbed the reporter by the neck and punched him while pushing him towards the door, insulting him in German in German along the way.
The DW reporter said that once they pushed Alkhaled into the car park, one of the men stayed outside and hit him in the head “at least three times” and punched and kicked him several times.
Her phone, which she had used to document the incident, was also broken. Later, in the emergency room, Alkhaled was treated for multiple facial injuries and a suspected concussion.
A spokesperson for Al Shami’s management team based in Beirut, Lebanon insisted that “Al Shami had no involvement in this incident.”
“The atmosphere remained calm during the interview and Al Shami took steps to defuse any tension,” the spokesperson told DW in an email.
“Both he and his management team deeply regret that such an unfortunate incident occurred and we are fully committed to protecting the dignity and safety of all journalists. We also reaffirm our strong stance against any form of violence, threats or disrespect towards the media.”
ongoing investigation
Through his own investigation on various social media platforms, AlKhaled believes he has identified the person who initiated the confrontation and who the singer had to calm down: a professional heavyweight boxer who, according to AlKhaled, appears to have worked as a security guard in videos at other Al Shami concerts.
Alkhaled says he has also seen the man in social media videos at other events organized by the same organizers of the Düsseldorf concert: Luxus Events, a Bonn-based company that specializes in bringing stars from the Arab-world to Germany.
But it’s not clear who the alleged attackers worked for, or what their work was behind the scenes.
Luxus Events referred DW to the company’s attorney, who has yet to respond to DW’s emails and phone calls.
State prosecutors have invited Alkhaled to examine photographs of potential suspects on record, and will evaluate the evidence provided by Alkhaled.
But Alkhaled feels the police have been too slow to act on the information they have collected.
His lawyer, Emina Malovic, said, “Even after a year, we still do not know of any concrete findings from the investigation.”
“We will continue to support the authorities in clarifying the incident. Taking into account the fact that a year has passed without any concrete results from the investigation, we hope and expect that the investigation will continue with the necessary vigor and continuity.”
Edited by: Reena Goldenberg
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