At a supermarket in the Netherlands, a 34-year-old man was removed from the store by security for attempting to steal a bottle of alcohol. He returned and attacked guard with a broken bottle neck, resulting in injuries to both. The man was arrested and hospitalised overnight, so he obviously came out of the ordeal in far worse shape then the guard.
He faces charges of attempted manslaughter or serious assault and will appear in court on February 14 2024.
The actions of the guard were considered self-defense.
Dutch article covering the incident here.
Although not a knife, a piece of glass can cause serious or potentially fatal injuries. There’s certainly the risk of losing an eye, the way this man was attempting to slash at the guard.
The response of the guard demonstrates how effective distance management, footwork and striking can be against edged weapons. These are not the typical wrist-grabby techniques we often see taught by “self defense” instructors, but fundamental methods from empirically developed styles such as Muay Thai and wrestling.
This could easily have resulted in the guard suffering far more serious injuries had there been an inch or two of difference, and I have shared these scenarios on the site before.
My point here is NOT that learning a martial art will guarantee success, however:
- The chance of surviving an attack from someone armed with an edged weapon increases the greater the difference in skill/size/strength/etc.
- The methods we see working in reality are consistently the same fundamentals we observe in other fights, including combat sports.