“Neither fascism nor putinism”, a man shouts as he is overpowered at the entrance to the auditorium of Ghent University. Just before, he hit the head of Thierry Baudet, the leader of the Dutch party Forum for Democracy (FVD), with an umbrella. Baudet allowed the lecture to continue at student association KVHV, but the blow was so hard that he suffered a mild concussion.
The Netherlands is preparing for elections in November, but the FVD is forced to pause the campaign for a while. Vlaams Belang MP Filip Brusselmans wrote on X that “the left is radicalizing”. “At a rapid pace.”
On Friday it emerged that the perpetrator may also have acted from anti-Russian motives. “It concerns a 32-year-old Ukrainian with permanent residence in Ghent,” says a police spokesperson. After interrogation he was allowed to leave again. The public prosecutor’s office will decide on prosecution later.
Baudet is known for far-right, but also for Putin-friendly positions. He came into disrepute due to connections with pro-Kremlin figures, such as John Laughland, one of his closest associates and previously associated with a think tank with Russian connections.
Ghent University had previously refused Baudet’s lecture after incidents with previous guest speakers, but was forced by a decision by the Council of State to allow it to go ahead. Rector Rik Van de Walle condemns the violence in front of the auditorium of his university.
