LONDON: An Algerian asylum-seeker in Belgium who saved a woman from a suicide attempt has been hailed as a hero.
Footage of Abdel Boukharouba, 25, helping the woman who was sitting on a railway line at Brussels-Midi station, has gone viral.
He told Sudinfo news agency: “I heard people shouting. The lady was sitting on the rails, while another woman shouted that a train would arrive in two minutes. I couldn’t bear to see a woman die before my eyes.
“I gave my bag to a friend and jumped on the tracks. She didn’t want to be rescued, but I grabbed her anyway and pulled her on to the platform.
“I sat with her for a while. She said she had family problems and her dog was all she had left. A little later, the police came and took further care of the woman.”
His actions have prompted calls for the government to give him residency in Belgium as a reward.
“I did it out of humanity,” Boukharouba, who is not officially registered in the country, said. “But, if it could help me improve my life, I won’t say no.”
