Police make three arrests after Lamine Yamal’s father stabbed in Catalonia
Authorities in Catalonia have detained three individuals following an incident in which Mounir Nasraoui, the father of Barcelona and Spain player Lamine Yamal, was attacked with a knife in a parking lot in Rocafonda, located close to Barcelona.
Nasraoui was brought to a hospital close by on Wednesday night after being attacked with a knife several times, according to the police who spoke to the Guardian. He is currently in the hospital in serious condition, but his condition is now stable.
The police mentioned that they were planning to arrest one more person on Thursday. At first, they said that the individuals being arrested would be charged with attempted murder. However, on Thursday, authorities stated that the investigation is still ongoing and it is too soon to determine if charges will be filed.
The event happened a month after Nasraoui, a 35-year-old man, gained attention all over Spain for supporting his son's impressive performance at the recent Euro 2024.
During the European Championship, the 17-year-old played a key role in Spain winning their fourth title. At the same time, his father created a widely shared moment by sharing an old photo on social media. The picture showed Lionel Messi posing with Lamine Yamal when he was just a baby.
The competition also put the neighborhood of Rocafonda, situated in the Catalan city of Mataró, in the spotlight. When Lamine Yamal scored the youngest goal in the tournament's history, he celebrated by making a hand signal of 304 - the final three numbers of the postcode for the diverse, working-class neighborhood.
The police department said that the stabbing occurred after an argument between Nasraoui and a group of people in Rocafonda. According to the Spanish newspaper El País, the dispute started when Nasraoui was walking his dog and got sprayed with water from a balcony above.
The Spanish press quickly highlighted that Nasraoui had been involved in previous conflicts before this incident. In the past year, he was charged €546 by a court in Mataró for insulting and throwing eggs at a tent supporting the far-right Vox party.
When the Guardian visited Rocafonda last month, some people supported Nasraoui's actions. They said the anti-immigrant party had put up the tent with the intention of provoking a reaction in a neighborhood where about a third of residents were born abroad. Juan Carlos Serrano Muñoz, the owner of El Cordobés bar, where Lamine Yamal and his father visited for breakfast before heading to training in Barcelona, commented that the party had come to incite people. Nasraoui was annoyed and questioned the reason for their visit, accusing them of provocation.
